The Mapes family of Effingham enjoy the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago with their children including their adopted children, Regino and Regina, who were born in the Philippines.
Misty Mapes and her husband, Patrick, of Effingham always had a desire to add to their family through adoption.
That dream became a reality in part due to Gift of Adoption Fund, a nonprofit organization that provides financial support to families that need help to pay for the hefty cost of adopting a child.
The Mapes, who have two biological children, Braydon, 16, and Madison, 11, were able to adopt 8-year-old twins, Regina and Regino — who go by Ina and Ino — about a year ago from the Philippines. They received a $4,000 grant that helped them pay travel expenses to the Philippines to bring the children home.
Though they had always had tossed around the idea of adoption, they were spurred to take action when their older son asked them about it a few years ago.
"He said, 'Hey. Can we adopt? I'd like to have a brother," Misty Mapes recalled.
Misty Mapes, who works as a teacher, and Patrick, who is a dockworker, set about eliminating as many of their expenses as they could to save the $40,000 they would need to took to fund the adoption.
That final boost was provided by the Gift of Adoption Fund, which bridges the game when people are nearing the goal of completing the adoption, but need a little extra financial help to finalize it, said Marcy McKay, a La Grange resident and volunteer for the fund.
Though they didn't need the financial help to adopt their children that the Gift of Adoption Fund provides, the McKays, who have three adopted children ages 14, 13, and 11, know how costly it is and are working to help other families adopt.
In November 2014, Bethany and Jared Crain got a call saying that they were matched with an expectant mother.
While they were ecstatic that they could be adding to their family of three, they decided not to tell their 4-year-old that she could be getting a sibling.
"It's just so extremely expensive," said McKay. "A lot of people don't have that kind of money."
The need on the part of children to have families is great, too. The fund estimates there are 140 million children around the world who are orphaned and 500,000 in the U.S. who are living in foster care and have no permanent family to call their own.
The goal of the fund is to inspire adoption by providing grants to qualified parents. Parents who seek grants are required to show that they have financial need and have already completed some of the steps needed to adopt such as working with a licensed agency and having a home study done.
The fund puts an emphasis on completing adoptions for children who may find it more difficult to be placed with a permanent family. Those children may be siblings, like Regina and Regino Mapes, children who are aging out, have medical needs or who may go into foster care.
The grants that are supplied by the nonprofit range from $3,500 to $7,500.
Joan Schoon's desire to be a foster parent was born out of compassion and sympathy.
As a teenager, she remembers listening to her friends who were foster children complain about treatment they endured in some of their previous foster homes.
"They apply for the exact dollar amount they need and the grants are paid directly to the adoption agency," McKay said.
The fund was founded in 1996 by a couple who, like the McKays, felt thankful that they had the financial resources to pay for adopting children, and wanted to help other families who need the support, according to its website.
She said the group raises money through a variety of fundraisers such as cocktail parties and golf outings.
"It's such a compelling cause," said McKay, noting that many of their donations are in the $50 to $100 ranges.
"It's a perfect fit," she said.
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It's been three years since the filing of a suit against the FBI after agents put several Muslims on the No Fly list to retaliate against their refusal to be conscripted as a confidential informants spying on other Muslims; the FBI's illegal retaliation cost their victims their jobs, subjected them to harassment, and cut them off from visits to family overseas.
The FBI and Department of Justice don't dispute the fundamentals in this case: that FBI officers placed Muslims on the No Fly list in retaliation for their refusal to cooperate (and not because they were believed to be a security risk), and that this was illegal.
However, they do object to their victims ability to sue individual FBI officials for their illegal actions; the government's lawyers asked the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to find that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) immunizes corrupt officials from legal consequences of lawbreaking, limiting victims to suing agencies, rather than agents.
The court disagreed. The FBI's victims' suit against the officers who wronged them can proceed to the next step.
Having decided the lawsuit can continue, the Appeals Court decides it doesn't need to reach a finding on the agents' qualified immunity assertions. This will be handled on remand by the lower court, which will first have to make this decision before deciding what (if any) damages the plaintiffs are entitled to.
This is far from a victory for the plaintiffs but it does open the door for similar lawsuits against federal officers for harassment and intimidation tactics deployed in hopes of turning lawful residents and visitors into government informants. Raising the possibility of a successful lawsuit above the previously-presumed zero percent should hopefully act as a minor deterrent against future abuses of power.
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The Arlington County Board plans to vote Saturday afternoon on giving Amazon $23 million and other incentives to build a headquarters campus in Crystal City, but only after hearing scores of northern Virginia residents and advocates testify for or against the project.
The five-member board is expected to support the plan, which was announced amid much hoopla on Nov. 13. The proposed county incentives are part of an agreement in which Amazon would occupy significant office space and bring at least 25,000 high-paying jobs to Arlington in coming years.
Opponents hope to postpone the vote until after additional public hearings, where they want representatives of the online retail giant to answer questions directly from anyone in the community.
The Saturday hearing was scheduled to begin no earlier than 1 p.m. and last several hours before the vote. Ninety-one people signed up in advance to speak on the topic.
In the four months since Arlington won a much-publicized, nationwide contest to attract the facility known as HQ2, Arlington residents have been asking questions about its impact on their community.
People have looked at the county’s five online Q&A sessions 14,000 times, and about 400 attended community events to discuss the provisions in the Amazon agreement. Board members and county staff also met with scores of civic organizations, served on multiple panels and appeared on television, online and in news articles to discuss the deal.
Most Arlingtonians, northern Virginians and residents of the Washington region support Amazon’s arrival, several surveys have found. Business organizations, universities and nonprofit groups came out strongly for the deal.
But a small, vocal group of activists has sought to block the project, saying that the county and commonwealth should not give any incentives to one of the world’s most valuable companies. They also have demanded housing and job protections for existing residents.
These opponents — including left-wing organizations and immigrants groups — felt empowered after Amazon canceled plans last month to build a headquarters facility in New York City, also with 25,000 jobs. The company withdrew after criticism of the plan from some elected leaders, unions and community activists.
In Virginia, however, such opposition did not appear to catch fire among the broader public.
Officials estimate that the Amazon project’s net fiscal impact on Arlington could be worth additional revenue of $162 million over 12 years and $392.5 million over 16 years.
The incentives agreement promises the world’s largest online retailer cash grants estimated at about $23 million if it occupies 6.05 million square feet of office space in Crystal City and Pentagon City through 2035.
The money would come from an expected increase in the hotel, motel and lodging tax paid by visitors; Amazon would get up to 15 percent of that increase, pegged to how much floor space is in active use by the company each year from 2020 to 2035.
Amazon’s offices will be located within an already-established special tax district where a portion of the property tax revenue goes toward infrastructure improvements such as parks and wider sidewalks.
The incentive agreement says that half of any new revenue from that district starting in 2021 will go specifically toward improvements around the Amazon buildings for the following 10 years. That grant is worth an estimated $28 million but the county says it’s not a grant just for Amazon, because the improvements will benefit other companies in the immediate area. Amazon will have a chance to express its opinion on how the county uses the money, although the board will make the decision.
The county also offered Amazon the possibility of using its fast, fiber-optic network connection, which would be the subject of a separate agreement if the company chooses to use it.
It’s not yet clear whether Amazon will pay the local business license tax because that tax is levied only on certain types of business, and Amazon has not yet announced which of its business units will be based in Arlington. If the company does pay the license tax, then some of its operations could be eligible for a discount of up to 72 percent under an existing program designed to attract technology companies.
While Arlington pored over the details, the Virginia General Assembly passed, and Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam signed, an incentives package worth up to $750 million for Amazon.
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Pop-rock band Ariy Shibuya have released their first single, “Thonglor” (“Wanna Ask”) on Sanamluang Music, a subsidiary of GMM Grammy.
The band’s name is a hybrid of Bangkok’s laid-back Ari neighbourhood and Tokyo’s Shibuya ward, home to all five members – singer Taishu “Taoz” Sumiyoshi, guitarist Bhumipat “Mine” Armano, bassist Tetsuya “Tetsu” Ueda, drummer Asawin “Win” Burapongbandhit and keyboard maestro Lertmaytee “Lert” Sanguankaew.
“We’re fascinated by the Japanese rock band X Japan, but our music isn’t meant to sound like theirs,” says Taoz, the head songwriter. “There’s only a Japanese scent to it. Basically, we put Thai lyrics to Japanese melodies."
View the “Thonglor” video at https://youtu.be/33HMOxWYwdo and check out the “AriyShibuya” page on Facebook.
Opera Siam and the Bangkok Opera Foundation are presenting “Madama Butterfly” at the Thailand Cultural Centre on July 11 and 12.
Madama Butterfly is Nancy Yuen’s signature role, having performed it at London’s Royal Albert Hall. The protégée of Placido Domingo will reprise the role in Bangkok alongside Covent Garden baritone Phillip Joll, in a production conducted by Somtow Sucharitkul.
Seats cost Bt500 to Bt5,000 for VIP treatment at www.ThaiTicketMajor.com and (02) 262 3456.
A-Time Media radio stations EFM and Chill are hosting the Perd Warp music festival at the Makkasan Airport Rail Link Station on July 14.
On the roster are Atom Chanagun, Somkiat, the Mousses, the Yers, Twopee Southside, WonderFrame, Gliss, Mean, and Moving and Cut. Great gear, food and drinks will be on sale.
To get there, register at www.EFM.fm or www.ChillFM.fm and get a code for admission to the festival.
Seven underground metal bands are wrecking the country on the Banana Tour 77, which kicked off last Saturday at the G Village Bangkok Circus Studio on Lat Phrao Soi 18.
Kluaythai, Annalynn, Roses Fall, Sudden Face Down, Ugoslabier, Break the Kids and In Vein will launch upcountry next, starting at Khon Kaen’s Tom Studio on July 29 and hitting the Boog Bar Pub & Restaurant in Nakhon Si Thammarat on August 25.
Saturday’s kickoff also featured all-girl outfit Adabel and Overdose. Upcountry there’ll be local talent at every gig, such as Skinny in Khon Kaen and Perpetual Demise in Nakhon Si Thammarat.
Get the details at (089) 768 6204 and the “Banana Mahachon” Facebook page.
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And Kate came out ahead of Meghan in a recent poll.
Photo Illustration by Jordan Amchin. By Mark Cuthbert/UK Press/Getty Images (Queen Elizabeth II), by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images (Prince Harry).
Prince Harry has pushed his grandmother the Queen off the top spot in a new royal poll, which has deemed the newly married duke the most popular royal of 2018.
Harry, sixth in line to the throne and at the center of the year’s biggest royal media event, was deemed likable by 77 percent of respondents, in a poll of 3,600 Britons conducted by YouGov between May 15 and October 31. Harry is followed closely by the Queen, with 74 percent, and Prince William, who is third with 73 percent of respondents saying they have a favorable view of him.
Harry is described by his fans as “admirable, likable, humorous, fun-loving, and genuine,” the YouGov survey said.
Prince Charles, who celebrates his 70th birthday tomorrow, comes seventh in the poll. His brother Prince Andrew is the least popular royal, ranked 15th in the survey.
Despite their constant presence in the media and ease with audiences, both Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle came in behind their spouses in the poll, ranked fourth and sixth, respectively. (Meghan came in behind Prince Philip, who has retired from public life, though he might have decades of royal life to boost him there.) It’s not the only poll in which Kate has recently out-ranked her sister-in-law; another recent survey found that Kate remains the most influential royal when it comes to fashion.
The Queen, the country’s longest reigning monarch, is traditionally voted the most popular member of the royal family, but 2018 has been an epic year for Prince Harry, whose global popularity was on vivd display during his and Meghan’s recent South Pacific tour. Only 7 percent of those surveyed had a negative opinion of Harry while 13 percent had a neutral one. 20 percent had a negative view of Prince Charles, and 30 percent percent had a neutral opinion.
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It is possible more people who came in contact with a man who died from the Ebola virus in Dallas, Texas, could test positive for the virus in the coming days, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Sunday.
Tom Frieden offered this possibility a day after a preliminary diagnosis showed that a health care worker who had “extensive contact” with Thomas Eric Duncan tested positive for Ebola. If the test is confirmed, this would be the first known case of Ebola being contracted or transmitted in the United States.
The level of the virus in the woman’s system was “low,” Frieden said, adding that another test to confirm whether she has the virus will be conducted later Sunday.
Frieden said at least 48 people who came in contact with Duncan before he was admitted to the hospital in Dallas are at risk of contracting the virus.
“Unfortunately, it is possible in the coming days we will see additional cases of Ebola,” Frieden said.
“The risk is in the 48 people who are being monitored, all of whom have been tested daily, none of whom so far have developed symptoms or fever,” Frieden said.
An “intensive investigation” is also being conducted to determine others who may have come in contact with Duncan while he was being treated, because they may have been exposed as well, Frieden added. Some of these workers could have had a breach in contamination control similar to the one that led to the nurse being infected, he said.
When the nurse became feverish on Friday, she reported it and was given a preliminary test for the virus, which turned up positive Saturday night, Frieden said.
The CDC and Texas health officials are investigating how many people the nurse came in contact with after coming down with symptoms of the disease.
Frieden said the CDC has sent additional staff to Dallas to assist with the response. The agency will also enhance training of health care workers who may have to treat patients with the virus.
The key to stopping the spread of the disease is to “break the chains of transmission,” he said. This involves promptly diagnosing anyone who has symptoms of the disease, isolating that individual, identifying everyone this person came in contact with and actively monitor those people over a 21-day period. If any of these contacts comes down with Ebola symptoms, then the same process starts over again.
David Lakey, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, who also participated in the news briefing, agreed.
“I firmly believe we will stop it,” Lakey said.
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World Series of Fighting on Tuesday announced that Alexandre has inked “an exclusive, multi-year agreement” to compete for the Las Vegas-based organization. Specifics of the deal were not disclosed.
A decorated muay Thai practitioner, Alexandre began his mixed martial arts career in 2011 and ran up a 5-1 record inside the Bellator cage in the span of 13 months, including a rematch win against the only man to beat him, Josh Quayhagen. The 33-year-old was absent from MMA for more than a year before returning to knock out Rey Trujillo in his most recent bout under the banner of Texas’ Legacy Fighting Championship.
Alexandre has focused mainly on kickboxing in the past two years, most recently defeating John Wayne Parr for the Lion Fight super middleweight title in October.
The date and opponent for Alexandre’s promotional debut “will be announced soon,” according to a release. WSOF has two events on its slate for the end of the year: WSOF 25 on Nov. 20 in Phoenix and WSOF 26 on Dec. 18 in Las Vegas.
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Attendees visit the Vodafone Group pavilion at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, March 4, 2015.
Vodafone, one of the world's biggest telecoms companies, announced better-than-expected sales Friday as its 4G plans grow.
The U.K.-based company reported an acceleration in its main quarterly sales growth on Friday as a cable TV acquisition in its biggest market, Germany, where it faces strong competition from Deutsche Telecom, lifted sales and consolidated the overall return to growth for the British firm. It also returned to growth in the U.K.
However, there was no mention in its statement of the one thing many investors want to hear about - a potential deal in Western Europe with John Malone's Liberty Global. The U.K., Germany and Netherlands were the markets identified by Malone as most fertile ground for a tie-up in May, but little has been heard on the deal in recent weeks.
The world's second-largest mobile operator said first-quarter organic service revenue grew 0.8 percent, ahead of the 0.1 percent it recorded in the fourth quarter and better than most analysts had expected.
Vittorio Colao, chief executive of the company, said in a statement: "Our emerging markets have maintained their strong momentum and more of our European businesses are returning to growth, as customer demand for 4G and data takes off," said.
The group reiterated its outlook for the full year.
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Posted on January 25, 2017. Brought to you by yellowpages.
Posted on June 03, 2013. Brought to you by ezlocal.
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Do Twinkle and mum Dimple share a wardrobe?
The star wife was missing for a greater part of the year from public glare due to her pregnancy. Twinkle chose to wear an Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla outfit, the same one her mother Dimple had worn last November at the 25th anniversary bash of the designer duo.
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Larry checks in with KPCC reporter Sharon McNary, who’s been hitting up several polling stations in Orange County and Los Angeles County, as well as Registrar of Voters for O.C. and L.A.
After being a finalist for LAPD chief in 2009 only to see the job go to Charlie Beck, Michel Moore has been selected to succeed Beck by L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti.
President Donald Trump signed the “right-to-try” bill into law on Wednesday, a measure that gives terminally ill patients access to experimental drugs that have not yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Humans have a habit of measuring things. Our shoe size. The ingredients in our food. How long it takes to get to work, with or without traffic.
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Steve Jobs is arguably one of the most successful CEOs ever. Apple's stock price has climbed from a little over $5 in December 1996 to more than $350 this month and it's hard to imagine Apple without him at the helm. But that wasn't always the case. Jobs was ousted as CEO of the company back in 1984 only to return 12 years later.
Jobs is still on a medical leave of absence that was granted back in mid-January, but COO Tim Cook told investors last week that his boss hopes to "return to his full-time role at Apple 'as soon as he can,'" according to EconMatters' Dian L. Chu. With Jobs preparing for his return to the director's seat and the first authorized biography of the CEO due out next year, EconMatters put together an infographic documenting Jobs' influence on Apple.
12 days after Apple was founded, Ronald Wayne sold his stake in the company to Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak for only $800. Today, his share would be worth about $22 billion.
The Apple II was responsible for $1 million in sales per year in 1977. Today, the MacBook series generated $1 million in sales every month.
In December of 1980 Apple stock was worth $4.428 per share.
An Apple Macintosh in 1984 was sold for $2,495.
$2,495 worth of Apple stock in 1984 would be worth $1.87 million today.
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A large, brand-new movie studio in Palm Beach County already has a potential box-office hit.
Twentieth Century Fox will film interior scenes for Speed II, sequel to the popular 1994 action movie, in the 20,000-square-foot sound stage at Palm Beach Ocean Studios in West Palm Beach, the studio's chief executive said on Thursday.
"I said when we opened in April we'd be lucky to get something in here by September," said Thorpe Shuttleworth, president and developer of the 42,000-square-foot studio at the Vista Center on Okeechobee Boulevard, west of Florida's Turnpike.
"And now we've got a high-budget action-adventure feature. Yes, that's a coup," he said.
Speed II will star Sandra Bullock, making a return appearance in the sequel, and Jason Patric, who is taking over the role played by Keanu Reeves in the original, according to Variety, the movie industry's trade publication.
Speed II will help get the studio's name out among film producers, said Chuck Eldred, executive director of the county's Film and Television Commission.
Eldred pushed for the county to give Shuttleworth $208,000 in job growth incentives.
"This is exactly what we needed to attract this kind of attention here," Eldred said.
And the studio is benefiting from the increased attention being paid to South Florida by Hollywood producers after recent films such as The Birdcage and Striptease, Shuttleworth said.
The film's producers will hire extra cast members in Florida, and other technical support workers may be hired locally as well.
Film industry publications estimate the cost of making Speed II at $40 million to $70 million.
The movie's producers toured the studio in April and have been working there since Monday. Sets are under construction in preparation for filming later this year.
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The write-up “Doctor had thyself” (Spectrum, October 4) took up the issue of professional ethics among doctors. Once sacrosanct Hippocratic Oath has been obscured by the lure of lucre and commission culture.
All human concerns and considerations are at stake so much so that each patient is considered a milch-cow. But all this is antithetical to the concept of a welfare state. Healthcare matters more than anything else in India.
The government, intelligentsia, law enforcing agencies and charitable organisations must rise to the occasion and curb illegal and undesirable medical practices. The marketing of drugs should be strictly regulated and supervised. Justice should be prompt and deterrent.
The role of a doctor in society ought to be consoling, sustaining and elevating in order to revive the erstwhile cordial and courteous bonds in doctor patient relationship. Still a roaring practice laced with milk of human kindness, credibility and self-esteem will bring fame, prestige and money. Introspect deeply and act resolutely.
Varanasi or Banaras (Spectrum, October 11) was one of the six flourishing places in the days of the Buddha. British resident, Jonathan Duncan established a Sanskrit college there in 1792. Mrs Annie Besant, an activist of the Theosophical Society started Central Hindu School in 1889, which eventually developed into the Banaras Hindu University in 1915.
When the celebrated Vishvanath Temple in the city was demolished and a mosque was built there under the orders of Aurangzeb, poet Chandar Bhan satirically said: “Ba-been karaamat-e-butkhaana-e-mara ai Shaikh/Agar kharaab shavad khaana-e-khuda gardad” (See the miracle of my temple. Even after its destruction it remains the abode of God).
Peerless poet, Mirza Ghalib, visited Varanasi on December 1, 1827. He was so much enamoured with the place that he stayed there for about a month. In his poem Chiraag-e-dair (lamp of temple) he admired the city. It comprises 108 couplets, a lucky number for the Hindus. Their rosaries have 108 beads. The poet, who described Banaras as the Ka’aba of Hindustan, says, a wise man told him that doomsday would not come, as God did not want the destruction of this elegant city.
The practice of giving English titles to Hindi movies (“Desi movies English titles”, Spectrum, Sept 27) is not new, as many movies have had English titles throughout the history of Indian cinema. First and foremost comes to mind films like Street Singer and President which had K.L. Saigal as hero. Mother India (1957) made by Mehboob is considered a landmark in Indian cinema.
Guru Dutt and Madhubala came up with an evergreen musical comedy Mr & Mrs. 55. Raj Kapoor produced “Boot Polish” (1956) bringing out the struggles of street children. Another one was Love in Shimla (1959) which introduced Sadhana as a new face. Evergreen hero Dev Anand starred in many movies with English titles like Taxi Driver, House No. 44, Paying Guest, CID, Love Marriage, Gambler, Jewel Thief and above all his magnum opus Guide (1966).
In “Road to happiness” (Saturday Extra, Sept. 12) the writer has beautifully enumerated eight points to achieve happiness, which has become a rare commodity in this materialistic and selfish world.
I fully endorse his points. Nathaniel Cotton’s verse, which the writer quoted to buttress his points, was full of wisdom, prudence, reason, sanity and practical knowledge.
It is said that sympathy is a heavenly quality and should be shown to everyone in trouble to attain happiness. Kindness, goodness and loving care of one’s aged and ailing parents, contentment and peace of mind, the belief in “live and let live”, “let bygones be bygones” and practice of ahimsa (non-violence) are the key ingredients of happiness. Noble deeds, good food, good thoughts, good conduct devoid of envy, jealousy, rivalry, grudge, malice, back biting and ill-will lead to happiness. The recital of god’s name acts as an icing on the cake.
Life is a precious gift of God. It is worth living with all its frustrations, impediments and failures. Those who live it as it comes along can solve problems; overcome hardships to achieve their goals and happiness. One should work and not remain idle to be happy. Bad habits like drinking in excess, smoking, taking opium and other such vices should be shunned as these ruin one’s happiness, home and hearth. Punctuality, the mark of civilisation and culture, must be cultivated to gain happiness.
Thinking about common good rather than about one’s own self, caring more for one’s duties than for rights and providing food, water and shelter to the have-nots can increase one’s happiness manifold. To conclude: Happy is the man, whose wish and care, a few paternal acres bound, content to breathe his native air, in his own ground.
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A devastating report by the State Department’s inspector general Wednesday shows just why Americans are right to distrust Hillary Clinton.
The 78-page document (by an Obama appointee, no less) concludes that Clinton’s server and email practices as secretary of state violated department policy — and she and her team lied about it repeatedly.
Clinton never sought an OK from State’s legal staff to use a private server, as required, and as her aides claimed. If she had, permission would’ve been denied.
Despite her repeated denials, there were at least two attempts to hack into her system. Neither was ever reported to State’s security personnel, as required.
Clinton claimed she used a private system strictly for convenience. But when urged to also use an official email address, she refused, citing the risk that personal emails might become publicly accessible.
Tellingly, Clinton and top aides Huma Abedin, Jake Sullivan and Cheryl Mills refused to be interviewed by the IG.
Here’s the bottom line: Virtually everything Clinton has said about her emails has been a lie. And no longer can supporters laugh off Emailgate so easily.
Hillary’s culpability and her flouting of the law now seem clear. But that leaves one more shoe to drop: Will Attorney General Loretta Lynch indict the Democrats’ presumptive presidential nominee? If she doesn’t, she’ll need a good excuse why.
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Thorpe of the New York Trucking and Delivery Association says the decision to raise penalties won’t solve the parking crisis.
For more than a decade, Ken Thorpe has been a soldier in the fight against parking tickets, which has become part of the escalating war for access to the curb. It's a conflict that has intensified in recent years as ride-hail services have clogged roads, New Yorkers have had more of their purchases delivered, and the streetscape has been remade with bicycle lanes, pedestrian malls and restrictions on parking and unloading.
The city "has whittled away at the commercial parking infrastructure," said Thorpe, the chief executive of the New York Trucking and Delivery Association, which he founded in 2004 to deal with parking issues for small and midsize businesses.
At the same time, trucks are making more deliveries than ever, and they must do that regardless of whether there's unloading space available. "Trucking is not a 'choice' situation," Thorpe said. "It's a necessity."
But now the 600 members of his group, as well as large fleet operators such as UPS and FedEx, are facing higher fines—and possibly more paperwork and time in traffic court—as a little-known yet controversial city policy comes under fire. The stipulated-fine program was established in 2004 by the Department of Finance to let businesses pay slightly reduced fines—and no fines at all for some infractions—in exchange for not contesting their tickets.
It was mainly a way to reduce everyone's administrative costs while having delivery companies pay roughly what they would have otherwise. (The reductions were calculated with an eye on the percentage of tickets that were successfully challenged.) But the program was a sore point with advocacy groups such as Transportation Alternatives, which considered it a corporate giveaway that neutered traffic enforcement.
Last month, in a bid at leveling the playing field for businesses not in the program—and furthering the city's congestion-reduction goals—the Finance Department announced that next month it would raise the program's fines, including those now set at zero.
As if that were not bad enough for Thorpe's membership, in the same week five City Council members introduced a bill to abolish the program. They denounced it as a free pass to large corporations and a contributor to reckless parking and congestion.
Thorpe says it's the council bill that's a giveaway—to parking-ticket brokers, who stand to gain business adjudicating tickets. He sees no way that the Finance Department's plan will change driver behavior or have any impact on congestion.
"The theory of the program was there are bad things, good things and some things in between, and it taught the driver you're going to pay a lot to do bad things and little or none to do the others," Thorpe said. "Now they've put the bad and good closer together, removing the driver's incentive for doing the good, because it's going to cost just a little more to do the bad."
In fact, good and bad parking behavior will not be punished that similarly. The most serious violations that get discounts, such as obstructing traffic ($10 off the $115 total), will now get no break at all, while many of the zero-fine infractions will cost $25.
But Thorpe says those increases could cost some of his members hundreds of dollars a week—enough that he would consider taking them out of the program. The $35 fine for double parking outside Midtown is still better than the official $115, but he notes that double parking is legal for the first 30 minutes, and enforcement is not always scrupulous.
In 2011 he sued the city, which for some years had been slapping double-parked delivery trucks with the more expensive violation of blocking a travel lane, which carried a $40 fine. In 2016 the city settled and paid those covered by the lawsuit $14 million.
Even so, the Finance Department, which worked with the Department of Transportation on the new fine schedule, says more needs to be done to ease congestion. The agency says the stipulated-fine program has been sending the wrong signal to the wider parking universe by not reflecting the fact that not all double-parking tickets are dismissed.
"We need the program to have incentives that are aligned with the city's goals to reduce congestion, and we need the program to be fair," said Finance Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey Shear. "We agree that the conversation about congestion is a larger conversation, and there are many other factors, and this program is one small piece. But we don't want to send the wrong message by saying double parking outside of Midtown will cost businesses nothing."
The Transportation Department maintains that it is doing all it can.
The agency is "committed to improving commercial accessibility throughout the five boroughs, especially in the context of our street-improvement projects," a spokeswoman said. As part of those projects, "new curb regulations are installed that are complementary to the larger curb-management goals of the corridor, such as faster bus mobility, reduction of double parking, and better commercial access."
But the Transportation Department is aware that it's a long way from curing congestion when demand for deliveries from myriad e-commerce businesses, including Amazon and Fresh Direct, is bigger than ever.
"Consumer demands and the amount of available space we have at the curb, they're at odds right now," Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg said at a Crain's breakfast forum last month. She added that parking enforcement can only do so much, and larger fixes, including congestion pricing and technology such as license-plate readers, might be part of the answer.
"Right now the demand for the curb exceeds the supply," she said.
Some members of the City Council are not convinced that higher fines will make the program more effective. They say any solution will include abolishing stipulated fines.
"This program doesn't work," said Costa Constantinides, a City Council member from Queens, who introduced the bill to end the program as one of several parking and transportation proposals. "Trucks are still parking in bike lanes. It's been around for years, and I really feel it's prohibiting us from having a real conversation around parking that we desperately need to have."
As part of that conversation, the councilman introduced a bill that would require the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which oversees city agencies, to have buildings under its jurisdiction receive deliveries between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m.
"The city should lead by example," Constantinides said.
That's not so simple, it turns out. A Transportation Department off-hours delivery program proved unworkable for many businesses, some of which had to add employees to accept the shipments. The councilman said his program would be "one part of the puzzle."
As it happens, parking-ticket broker Glen Bolofsky has contributed more than $4,000 to Constantinides' campaign treasury in the past five years. A spokesman for the councilman dismissed the idea that the bill was intended to help brokers.
"The majority of those that benefit from this [stipulated-fine] program are big-box delivery corporations who flout traffic laws at the expense of pedestrians, cyclists and drivers," the spokesman said.
Bolofsky agreed that ending the program would help brokers, but he insisted the biggest beneficiary would be the public. "Congestion will be reduced," he said. "More money will be raised."
Assuming 70% of double-parking tickets are dismissed, he estimated the city has forfeited $147.5 million over the life of the program by not fining participants for double parking beyond Midtown.
The new schedule will collect about 30% of double-parking fines, but Bolofsky insists the program still benefits the biggest operators the most. He maintains that neither the city nor companies such as UPS will lose money adjudicating tickets, arguing that many companies still have in-house teams for the job, and automation can reduce the expense further. He noted that the city handled 12 million tickets a year in 1990, when they were handwritten, and had to deal with only 10 million last year. Enforcement agents now use handheld devices that reduce the errors and bad handwriting that led to dismissals.
The Finance Department disagrees with his conclusions, saying both the city and the 1,751 companies in the program—encompassing 48,880 vehicles—would spend more without the program.
"We would need more hearing officers," Shear said. "The companies would have to retain brokers or hire staff to defend against these parking tickets. In terms of revenue, there would be no increase to the city."
Apart from whether the program is good for the city, a walk through Midtown with several UPS executives revealed how difficult following parking rules can be.
Another option would be to park at a metered spot a couple of blocks away and cart diamonds by hand truck to recipients, which UPS rules out for security reasons. "It would put our driver and other people in the area at risk," said Axel Carrion, director of state public affairs.
A few blocks away, on West 50th Street, where commercial parking was allowed at that hour, every space between Sixth and Seventh avenues was taken, mostly by delivery and commercial vehicles. There were two idling for-hire vehicles and three cars with "parking authorization" placards—the bane of parking-reform advocates—on their dashboard.
Even when a UPS driver finds a legal spot, regulations can conflict with the company's efforts to operate efficiently. Using new dispatch-planning technology, the company has increased the number of packages a truck will carry to nearly 400 so that one truck does the work of two. But that truck needs to stay in one place much of the workday, doing pickups when it's done with deliveries. Parking rules—which aim to promote the flow of traffic and keep operators from hogging spots—require it to move after three hours.
But circling the block will delay deliveries and the truck could lose the spot, so the driver will stay put. This reduces congestion and pollution. But the ticket, which costs program participants nothing, will set them back $25 under the new schedule.
Overall UPS expects its payments under the fine program to jump 32% next year, to $21.8 million, with a $3.4 million increase from double parking and more than $1 million from unloading in the wrong spot or at the wrong time. The company says it would like to try other solutions, such as paying for spots where a truck could sit all day. Long term, it would like to see new building construction include space for unloading.
Right now the firm is weighing the benefits of staying in the program.
"My drivers can be trained to avoid the ticket, and we have drastically reduced the amount of tickets over the past couple of years," said Dan Byrnes, director of finance at UPS, adding that the city's ticket data aided his efforts. "Now with these changes, [the city] is not really helping. Just raising prices is not going to change behavior."
===
“All the gold names have been pretty much getting hammered both on the credit side and the equity side for quite some time with gold prices coming down,” Wen Li, an analyst at CreditSights Inc., said in a phone interview yesterday. Pascua- Lama is also a “really big overhang” for Barrick, he said.
Gold futures in New York yesterday dropped below $1,200 for the first time since August 2010, as signs of improving U.S. economic growth boosted speculation the Federal Reserve will wind down its asset-purchase program. After rising to a record $1,923.70 an ounce in September 2011, gold futures for August delivery fell 1.6 percent to $1,192.20 at 8:47 a.m. today on the Comex in New York.
Barrick has forecast it will cost $950 to $1,050 to produce an ounce of gold on average from all its mines this year. Goldcorp forecast a cost of $1,000 to $1,100.
===
When Cait and I found out how easy it is to make ravioli–and with such completely impressive and delicious results!–we just had to share this fabulous harvest recipe with you.
This dish is a poem to autumn, filled with sweet, tender butternut squash combined with a touch of honey, fresh thyme, rosemary, sage, and Parmesan, and topped with chopped hazelnuts (or you could substitute walnuts) and brown butter. This would work beautifully for any family feast or romantic, intimate dinner.
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly oil a baking sheet. Cut the squash in half through the stem and lay the halves cut side down on the oiled baking sheet. Bake 50-60 minutes, until easily pierced with a knife. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Scoop out seeds and fibers and discard, then spoon the flesh into a mixing bowl. Mash squash with a potato-masher until smooth, then add breadcrumbs, 2 tablespoons Parmesan, honey, thyme, rosemary, chopped sage, and orange zest. Mix thoroughly and season with salt and pepper.
2. Warm the olive oil and nut oil over medium heat in a small frying pan and add hazelnuts or walnuts. Cook, stirring often, about 3 minutes, or until nuts are golden. Transfer nuts to a plate and set aside.
3. Melt butter in a medium saucepan until it turns brown and begins to smoke, 3-4 minutes. Remove immediately from heat, add nutmeg, and set aside.
4. Place a pasta sheet on a lightly floured work surface. Spoon mounds of filling on the sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart (the number of mounds you make will depend on the size of the pasta sheets you use). Lightly mist the mounds with a spray mister filled with water, then place a second pasta sheet over the first, covering the filling mounds, and pressing firmly around the edges and between the mounds to seal. Using a fluted cutting wheel or knife, cut between the rows of ravioli. Repeat with remaining sheets of pasta and filling.
5. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add ravioli and cook until tender, 2-3 minutes. To serve, reheat the browned butter. Drain ravioli and place in warmed serving bowl. Toss with butter, sprinkle with hazelnuts and 1/4 cup Parmesan. Garnish with sage leaves and serve immediately.
Inspired by Williams-Sonoma Seasonal Celebration: Autumn, by Joanne Weir (Time-Life Books, 1997).
===
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on July 12, 2018, on page 16.
Assembled by Palestinian artist Said Baalbaki, the exhibition presents 50 of Abbo's sketches, etchings and object, as well as texts – all taken from Baalbaki's personal collection of work from, and publications on, the elusive sculptor. Baalbaki has no work of his own in this show.
Born in Safad, northern Palestine, around 1888-1890, Abbo was a farmer and fisherman who later took up carpentry and stone masonry. It was not until he moved to Berlin in 1911 to study sculpture that his artistic career took shape.
Baalbaki has spent the last four years finding, and determining attribution for, 70 artworks and 100 texts mentioning the artist.
Baalbaki says many of Abbo's sculptures didn't survive World War I. He believes those that were originally exhibited in museums in Germany were taken during the war and melted down to make weapons.
Alongside Abbo's artworks are vintage photos of places he'd been or postcards from that time period, which Baalbaki says is to give an overall look at the life he led, in today's age of media and imagery.
Baalbaki intends to continue his research and tracking down Abbo's works.
===
I get the point; this is an M-rated Kinect game. Can you please stop throwing blood all over me, Sega? Oh god, it's in my mouth.
Sega's Rise of Nightmares is the gamer that finally realizes the joy of air-chainsawing the undead into tiny little pieces, even if it still has a way to go towards capturing the joy of simple movement and navigation.
Frankly I feel Sega is trying too hard. All we really need is a guy standing still in a dark room while hordes of bizarre creatures charging us and tons of dismemberment-friendly devices within arm's reach. Don't sweat the moving about. All I crave are clockwork zombies, undead maids, and a scythe to disembowel them by.
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The Netherlands’ Chris Vos clinched gold as the World Para Snowboard World Cup Finals in Klövsjö concluded.
Newly crowned world champion Lisa Bunschoten earned victory on the opening day of the World Para Snowboard World Cup Finals in Klövsjö.
Klövsjö is set to host the World Para Snowboard World Cup Finals, with athletes set to descend on the Swedish municipality for the last competition of the season.
France’s Maxime Montaggioni retained his men’s SB-UL banked slalom title as action begun today at the World Para Snowboard Championships in Pyha in Finland.
The World Para Snowboard Championships are due to get underway in Pyha in Finland tomorrow boasting a new snowboard cross format and the return of France's world champion Maxime Montaggioni among the highlights.
Slovakia's Miroslav Haraus was among the six slalom gold medallists on the last day of the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup Final in Morzine in France.
Marie Bochet and Arthur Bauchet both claimed standing gold medals for hosts France today at the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup Finals in Morzine.
Jesper Pedersen led Norway to victory in World Para Alpine Skiing's inaugural mixed team competition at their World Cup Finals in Morzine in France.
The closing event of the World Para Alpine Skiing season will begin tomorrow when the World Cup Finals get under way in Morzine in France.
France’s Paralympic champion Marie Bochet finished the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup at La Molina today with a perfect record after winning her eighth consecutive race in this season’s series.
Austrian 16-year-old Veronika Aigner, with sister Elisabeth as her guide, sprang a surprise in women’s visually impaired event on the fourth day of the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup at the Spanish resort of La Molina.
Switzerland's Theo Gmur, Paralympic champion in the men's standing giant slalom, succeeded at the third attempt in beating France's 18-year-old world champion Arthur Bauchet at the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup at the Spanish resort of La Molina.
Double world champion Jeroen Kampschreur’s revenge win in the men’s sitting event headlined a day of comebacks during the second giant slalom races at the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup in La Molina in Spain.
France's Arthur Bauchet got off to a winning start today at the World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup in La Molina, triumphing in the first of three men's standing giant slalom contests.
France's Arthur Bauchet will be the man to beat in the standing events when the penultimate World Para Alpine Skiing World Cup of the season begins in La Molina tomorrow.
===
numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. She attended Shanksville Stonycreek High School and was a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Buckstown. Family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. until time of service at 8 p.m. Sunday at the Deaner Funeral Home, Stoystown. Rev. Robert Way officiating. Interment Lambertsville Cemetery. Contributions may be given to assist the family c/o Kay Grasser 158 Juniata St., Berlin, PA 15530, or to St. Paul's Lutheran Church, 6872 Lincoln Hwy., Stoystown, PA 15563. DeanerFuneralsAndCremations.com.
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Posted on Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 8:40 a.m.
A Manchester woman’s selfless gift could help extend the life of a co-worker’s husband, WXYZ reports.
Lisa Moutinho, an administrator at the Washtenaw County District Court in Ypsilanti, is giving one of her kidneys to Michael Brunson, who’s been on dialysis for five years, the station reported.
The surgeries are scheduled for Wednesday at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.
Thu, Mar 15, 2012 : 3:28 p.m.
My daughter has lived 37 years with one kidney. No problems all these years. Not even a kidney infecion. Congratulations to Lisa for her generosity and good future health to Michael!!!
Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 6:03 p.m.
I've known Lisa for many years and this doesn't surprise me in the least. Yeah Lisa!
Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 3:15 p.m.
This is certainly an amazing gift. Usually it is a relative who does this. But, if something happens to her one-good kidney, then what? She also has 3 children.
Thu, Mar 15, 2012 : 1:41 a.m.
The fear you express in this question is one many people have. Part of the reason that I hear people asking this question is that folks are really unaware of basic biology. It's really uncommon for something to happen to &quot;one&quot; kidney. The most likely thing to have happen to one kidney, is to be born without it. Donating doesn't have a mathematically significant impact upon the donor.
Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 5:20 p.m.
Harry, I am an organ donor but maybe some people have religious objections? I just hope that people will consider doing it.
Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 3:51 p.m.
Hopefully there are people who are as generous as she is. One thing I will never understand. Why isn't every person in america an organ donor. Your dead why would you want to be buried with your organs?
Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 2:29 p.m.
Now here is a hero. Its not her job. She's not getting paid. We seem to throw around that word a lot these days.
Wed, Mar 14, 2012 : 2:27 p.m.
===
But why will this bailout work when an earlier one failed and has Greece now surrendered control of its own economy?
After more than 14 hours of negotiations in Brussels an agreement has been reached on a rescue package to the tune of $170bn that will allow Greece to pay its debts, which are due in less than a month.
The deal ensures that Greece will not be forced into defaulting on what it owes in the short term.
"It was a bad deal, reached at gunpoint as far as the Greek government is concerned. The new government will have to work around this in order to enhance growth measures and reduce austerity levels because austerity on top of austerity will not do the trick. If you keep milking a cow without feeding it you are not going to end up with the desired results."
Despite reservations over Greece's ability to deliver on austerity measures, eurozone finance ministers have given Athens billions of euros to rescue the country from its financial woes.
Reacting to the second tranche of the bailout, Lucas Papademos, the Greek prime minister, described the day as a historic one for the Greek economy.
"With today's decisions, we are given an opportunity to move towards more stable conditions, to reduce the uncertainty which has affected the economic activity and enhance confidence in the prospects of the Greek economy," he said.
"In this way, the adjustment process of the economy can be facilitated and also better conditions for its recovery can be provided and new jobs can be created."
But some financial experts argue that once again the can has been kicked down the road to be dealt with later.
The conditions of the second bailout include $399m cutbacks in military spending, a $40m saving by reducing staff numbers in central government, and reducing the minimum wage, as well as slashing overtime pay for doctors in public hospitals by at least $66m.
What this means is further budget cuts which are already deeply unpopular with the Greek people who have continuously opposed harsh austerity measures imposed following the first bailout in 2010.
"The political system has very low credibility and in order to proceed with these tough measures you need to have credible political personnel, which we are lacking right now. Hopefully there will be an inflow of new people from the private sector. There is a huge debate as to whether the major parties will survive this economic crisis."
As before, eurozone finance ministers say they want assurances Greece will stick to its promises.
Their comments were backed by the contents of a leaked report from the European Commission, the Central Bank and International Monetary Fund.
The report predicts that Greek debt could stay at a staggering 160 per cent of the country's GDP by 2020, unless drastic changes are made.
Critics say the new measures to bail out struggling countries have to be matched by economic reforms.
Jan Kees de Jager, the Dutch finance minister, said: "When you look at the derailments in Greece which have occurred several times now, it is probably necessary that there is some kind of permanent presence of the troika in Athens, not every three months, but more on a permanent basis. I am in favour of that."
So why should this bailout work when a previous one has failed, and in accepting the stringent conditions attached, has Greece surrendered control of its own economy?
To what extent will this second bailout rescue Greece's shattered economy, at what cost and how is this going to impact Greece's internal politics?
Joining presenter Mike Hanna on Inside Story are guests: Fokion Zaimis, a small business owner and the CEO of Science Park; Vicky Pryce, a Greek-born economist and the former joint head of the UK government economic service; and Constantine Michalos, an economist and president of the Athens chamber of commerce and industry.
"There is already an EU task force here and they are trying to make sure that the various ministries that are important to the economy do the right thing. But there is a concern that actually some of that money will never be spent, it won't be spent correctly, it won't be value for money and it won't benefit the economy."
Finance ministers meeting in Brussels approve $170bn rescue package needed to avoid default by debt-ridden nation.
===
The arrest of opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez exposes Venezuela’s Potemkin democracy and Hugo Chavez’s poisonous legacy.
A few days after Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chavez expired, his body saturated with cancer he believed was implanted in him by the CIA, I sat on an MSNBC panel encircled by academics sympathetic to the dead autocrat. Vastly outnumbered by halfwits and fellow travellers, I reached for the most conciliatory point available. “Chavez was no democrat," I muttered, after viewing clips of various silly pundits denouncing him as a dictator, "but words mean things." An authoritarian, yes, but he didn't quite rise to the definitional standard of dictator. “You can go to Venezuela, you can be in the opposition, you can read [opposition newspaper] El Nacional...” And on and on I droned.
It was a tedious point, and one that, in pursuit of a narrow semantic argument, elided all the undemocratic developments in Venezuela since Chavez began his campaign of political and social polarization, his destruction of the country’s economy and already tattered democratic institutions. But compared to my fellow guests, I was something of a counterrevolutionary, a wrecker, an ideological deviationist serving the interests of the bourgeoise. Or the CIA. Or USAID. A particularly radical panelist, one of those sad little political pilgrims always sniffing out the next Third World utopia, had argued in the days after Chavez's death that "the biggest problem Venezuela faced during his rule was not that Chávez was authoritarian but that he wasn’t authoritarian enough."
My academic co-panelist, so disappointed in Chavez’s apparently mild form of Castroism, can rejoice in the disastrous but sufficiently authoritarian rule of his chosen successor, the former bus driver and Chavez confidante Nicolás Maduro. But the Cuban-trained Maduro, who has variously claimed to have seen Chavez’s ghost in bird form and reported that his mentor’s apparition was spotted loitering in the Caracas subway system, rendered the autocrat-versus-dictator debate moot this week when he ordered the arrest of the handsome, telegenic, and Harvard-trained opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. It was Lopez and his allies who helped organize a series of protest marches in the past week, during which three people were brutally gunned down--and the weight of evidence, much of it marshalled by the usually pro-government newspaper Últimas Noticias, suggests that all three were killed by Maduro’s goon squads.
So naturally, the government ordered the arrest of...Lopez.
And yesterday, at the start of a large—and illegal—opposition march (the government had a counter demonstration, which oddly wasn’t declared illegal), Lopez gave a short speech and turned himself over to the National Guard. It was an astoundingly brave bit of defiance; after all, is there a place on Earth worse than the inside of a Venezuelan prison? And a lesser man, like myself, would have sprinted to the airport and hopped the next flight to Miami. But there was Lopez, after having tenderly kissed and bid farewell to his wife, being wrenched into a waiting police van, a Venezuelan flag in one hand and a clutch of white flowers in the other. A picture that perfectly illustrated the death blow to Venezuelan democracy. Lopez would soon arrive at a military prison to await charges of incitement (!), homicide (!!), and terrorism (!!!).
Maduro, in the lunatic tradition of his lunatic predecessor, conjured a sinister plot: “We have been informed that the ultra-right wing of Venezuela, in tandem with the ultra-right wing of Miami, apropos the bench warrant, activated foreign groups to find and kill [Lopez] so as to fuel a political crisis and lead us to civil war." It’s not so generous to defame and arrest a political opponent, but look how generous they were in saving his life from his fellow fascists!
Indeed, outside of the official newspaper of the 1932 German Communist Party, is there any other organized political movement in history that is so profligate in its use if the word fascist? And if we are to allow elastic political definitions when discussing Venezuela—the moderate opposition are National Socialists, for instance—I am going to slacken my rules governing the use of the word dictator: Chavez might not have qualified, but Nicolas Maduro sure as hell does.
===
The NHS is still running Windows XP en masse, two and a half years after Microsoft stopped delivering bug fixes and security updates.
Nearly all of England NHS trusts – 90 per cent – continue to rely on PCs installed with Microsoft’s 15-year-old desktop operating system.
Just over half are still unsure as to when they will move to a replacement operating system.
Fourteen per cent reckoned they’d move to a new operating system by the end of this year, and 29 per cent reckoned the move would happen “some time” in 2017.
Windows XP is not receiving any security updates from Microsoft, meaning health service PCs are wide open to hackers and malware.
The data on the NHS' use of Windows XP comes courtesy of a Freedom of Information request from Citrix, which approached 63 NHS trusts and received responses from 42.
An FoI request from Citrix made in July 2014, three months after Microsoft’s deadline to move off Windows XP, had found 100 per cent of NHS trusts were dependent on the operating system.
The Reg first reported in early 2014 how vast sections of the UK public sector was set to miss Microsoft’s April 2014 kill date for XP.
The government had agreed a temporary framework support agreement with Microsoft which guaranteed delivery of special security patches for a year.
That agreement ended on April 14 2015 after it was decided not to go for a second year.
===
The new head of the Boston FBI Field Office sat down with NBC10 Boston to talk about his new role.
He's the FBI's new man in charge in Boston: Joseph Bonavolonta, special agent in charge of the Boston field office, sat down with NBC10 Boston Monday to talk about the current threats the bureau is tackling.
"What keeps me up at night would simply be, 'What is it we don't know or what we aren't aware of,'" said Bonavolonta.
He said the biggest threats are violent crime, gang violence, terrorism and cyber attacks.
"We have nation states that are also backing or sponsoring criminal actor to engage in a wide variety of cyber-crimes," said Bonavolonta.
The FBI veteran took over the field office in Chelsea in January. He now oversees several high profile cases, including "Operation Varsity Blues."
In March, federal investigators announced the arrest of 50 parents, coaches and high profile celebrities in what's been called the biggest college admissions scandal in history.
"We believe all of them parents, coaches and facilitators lied, cheated and covered up their crimes at the expense of hardworking students and taxpayers everywhere," said Bonavolonta at the March 12 press conference.
It's a case that remains active.
"As you know, that is an ongoing and active investigation, so I'm not going to comment any further than what we've already stated based on the press conference subsequent to the arrests in that case," said Bonavolonta. Asked if was still an ongoing and evolving case, he said, "Yes."
Bonavolonta took over the post from Hank Shaw, but he's no stranger to this field office. He served as assistant special agent in charge from 2013 to 2017. His father was also in the bureau for 24 years and worked on organized crime investigations in New York.
"You could say the FBI is in my DNA. It's in my blood," said Bonavolonta.
The threats are always changing. Right now, the Boston field office is heavily involved in security preparations for the upcoming Boston Marathon.
"We are incredibly focused on determining if there is any type of intelligence that could lend itself toward a credible threat," he said. "As we sit here right now, we have not determined any."
Six years after the attack at the finish line, terrorism, both foreign and homegrown, remains a top threat.
"I think now, when you look at what one of our primary focuses is within counter-terrorism program, it's home-grown violent extremists," said Bonavolonta.
He added that the bureau continues to work around the clock on marathon security.
===
For a career that once seemed so good on paper, the crisis in teacher recruitment is now hardly ever out of the news.
There are not enough people signing up to become teachers and too many are dropping out - some experienced due to the stress and increase in workload but often the newly qualified leave the profession, unprepared for the life in the classroom.
School lead Andrew Truby, a national leader of education, is determined to change the narrative about teaching as a profession.
He feels school leaders have it in their gift to change this situation on the ground by making brave decisions and by investing in the professional culture so that schools become irresistible places to work.
At St Thomas of Canterbury School, in Meadowhead, where Mr Truby is executive headteacher, there is a 100 per cent school-based teacher training school which is going from strength-to-strength.
The outstanding Ofsted-rated school became a teaching school in 2015, and works with partner schools in the Learning Unlimited Teaching School Alliance.
The alliance, based in a modern training facility at the school, takes on School Direct trainees on a year-long programme.
Each student is placed in one of 14 partner schools across Sheffield, Doncaster and Chesterfield for the entire programme, where they will work for a year alongside outstanding and primary class teachers.
Teaching school manager, Anita Bray, said: "The beauty of this course is that trainee teachers are based in a school for the whole programme.
"They encounter children and liaise with parents. They do things like parents evening - all the nitty gritty.
"The trainee teachers have been there and have done it, they have had that experience which is much different from doing it in classrooms."
During the course, students spend time in another of the partner schools so they get to experience life in two schools.
They are given a mentor who, at first, they observe, then plan lessons alongside before the mentor oversees the trainee teacher planning and delivering the lessons.
The trainee teachers meet once a week at the School Direct hub session for training, with specialist leaders of education or subject specialists coming in to take sessions.
Teaching school director, Sarah Rockliff, described the process as 'learning by doing'.
She said: "Trainee teachers are in classrooms and they are coming to hub sessions and picking up ideas about teaching and learning and then the next day they get the chance to put that into practice.
"Teaching is a craft and the only way to become a master of your craft is to keep practising it."
She added: "After only a few weeks the trainees start to refer to their partner school as 'my school' and they feel a real connection to the school they are working in and are invested in the children. That adds to the motivation.
"It's a hard course and requires a lot of hard work."
The alliance was established in 2015 and the first cohort of students all gained jobs after completing the course.
Trainees come from a variety of backgrounds, some have been teaching assistants or involved in education, while others are looking for a career change.
Trainee teacher Nick Walker, aged 31, taught English abroad before returning to England to further his career.
He said: "I have been teaching for five years already and I thought it would be beneficial to me to be in a hands-on situation and seeing what it was like day-today.
"I was at university 10 years ago. I wanted to carry on learning and this feels like a job whereas if I'd gone back to university it would have felt like a step backwards."
Former secondary school teaching assistant Kirsty Norris, 25, said: "You see the reality of life in a school. You experience parents' evening and when sometimes your lessons plans just don't work.
"It's hard work but you know that next year it will all be worth it."
Mr Truby, who is strategic lead for the alliance, said recruiting teachers ready for the classroom had been a challenge in the past.
"Recruitment of high quality teachers is an ongoing challenge for schools and in the past the newly qualified teachers who we did appoint were not ready for the classroom," he said.
"Through our 100 per cent school-based teacher training route, our School Direct trainee teachers experience the full school year in a primary school.
"When they start in their NQT year, they are confident in subject knowledge, planning, marking, assessment as well as knowing how the school works throughout the year."
He felt the perception around teaching needed to change because it is 'the best job in the world'.
He added: "Although teaching as a career gets a really bad press and there is a lot of talk about workload, we believe that the schools who invest in their culture will have an easier job recruiting and retaining the best teachers.
"We spend time making our schools a positive place to work because happier teachers mean happier children.
"It is time to change the narrative about this profession because we believe that teaching is the best job in the world."
The alliance is still recruiting trainees for September when it will start two new programmes. In addition to general primary, there will be a primary with maths and an early years route.
===
Wonderful building lot it Clarksville's Premier subdivision, Merifield Acres. 0.71 Acres with a three bedroom Certification Letter for a septic system. Almost touches the CORPS of Engineers lake front property. Quite hidden property prefect for a retirement home of a lake country getaway.
Five Acres in the popular Ivy Hill area at Buggs Island Kerr Lake. Near the amenities of Island Creek Dam with boat launch and lake access. Zoned R2 so your options for a dwelling near the Lake are wide open.
A wooded lot that borders COE Land to the Lake. The added buffer behind offers additional privacy and room to roam. So near the amenities of Island Creek Park with boat launch in the community. Wooded and secluded with Buggs Island Kerr Lake only a walk away.
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How successful has Nato's strategy been in Afghanistan?
Under General David Petraeus, a major plank of Nato's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) strategy has been "kill/capture raids" - lightning strikes on senior Taliban personnel to either take prisoner or kill.
But have they worked? Isaf supplies no consistent data on the policy, other than issuing a string of press releases claiming success after success, releases which often describe several raids in different places simultaneously. Researchers Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn wanted to find out exactly how the missions worked.
You can read their full report here. Frustrated by the lack of hard data, Strick van Linschoten scraped the reports, then used the Tinderbox database package to process each incident and extract the key numbers.
What he found is a very different picture to that described by Isaf press releases. "There are still relatively large numbers of Afghans subject to the capture-or-kill raids," he says.
Although, interestingly, there has been a decline in these raids since Petraeus left Afghanistan in July this year.
The report is a fund of data crucial to understanding the way Nato has fought the conflict. We've mapped some of the key facts by province, too.
This data, painstakingly collated, is the first time we can get a real picture of what is happening.
Aside from occasional scraps thrown to the media by ISAF, this is the first time that we have been able to get a somewhat more nuanced picture of how ISAF is operating, minimum figures for how many people are being detained and killed as well as a makeshift way to evaluate the usefulness of ISAF's own aggregate numbers that supposedly show the successes of the raids in Afghanistan.
Strick van Linschoten has visualised the timeline of releases below - you can explore it by clicking and dragging - or seeing it on the original site.
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Inter Milan's lead at the top of Serie A was cut when they lost 2-1 at home to Lazio on Sunday while AS Roma beat Genoa 2-0 to record their first win in eight games and ease the pressure on under-fire coach Rudi Garcia.
The title race remains congested as second-placed Fiorentina defeated Chievo 2-0 and Napoli, in third, beat Atalanta 3-1. Juventus' winning streak continued when they came from behind to beat Carpi 3-2.
Napoli and Fiorentina have 35 points, one behind Inter who were sunk by two-goal Antonio Candreva.
Roberto Mancini's side fell behind when Candreva struck a fifth-minute thunderbolt but they levelled as captain Mauro Icardi slotted the ball beneath Etrit Berisha in the 61st.
Brazilian midfielder Felipe Melo then gave away a penalty in the 87th minute after fouling Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Candreva beat Samir Handanovic on the rebound after his initial effort was blocked.
Melo lost his composure and was dismissed in stoppage time after aiming a kung-fu kick at Lucas Biglia and Milinkovic-Savic received a second yellow card moments later.
"Unfortunately Melo did two stupid things," coach Mancini told Sky Sport Italia. "We did the damage ourselves, we threw it away."
Mario Mandzukic scored twice as Juve extended their Serie A winning streak to seven matches to head into the winter break in fourth on 33 points, a point clear of Roma in fifth.
Former Juve striker Marco Borriello gave second from bottom Carpi the lead but Mandzukic equalised in spectacular fashion when he swivelled to fire a volley past Vid Belec.
Mandzukic netted again with a header in the 41st minute. Paul Pogba added a third before Leonardo Bonucci's late own goal set up a tense finale.
Roma's Alessandro Florenzi and Sadiq Umar scored, while Edin Dzeko was sent off for swearing at the referee, as Garcia's side ended a run of seven games without a win in all competitions by beating Genoa.
Garcia was close to the exit door, according to media reports, following their midweek Italian Cup elimination by Serie B Spezia but may have bought himself some time.
"We can see the light at the end of the tunnel," said Frenchman Garcia. "We remain close to second place and it's all open for 2016."
Napoli saw off Atalanta with two second-half goals from Gonzalo Higuain although both sides had a player sent off during an ill-tempered match.
Fiorentina downed Chievo with goals from Nikola Kalinic and Josip Ilicic while AC Milan's fine form under Sinisa Mihajlovic continued as they came from behind to win 4-2 at struggling Frosinone to extend their unbeaten run to eight in all competitions.
Verona and Sassuolo drew 1-1, Sampdoria beat Palermo 2-0 and Udinese won 1-0 at Torino.
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After your business is up and running, your focus naturally shifts to increasing efficiency. The small things you do to lower costs and increase output can be the difference between a failing business and soaring profits. No matter how good your team members are, you should tweak the environment in which they work to insure the best possible results.
There are many reasons why developing a protocol to measure efficiency benefits your business. You are able to pinpoint areas that need improvement, and you can break your team’s performance down by tasks. Perhaps you will notice that the whole process is going smoothly except for one minor operation that can be eliminated to improve efficiency. This kind of insight can help you restructure the physical environment or delegate tasks in a new way to increase efficiency. You can also evaluate the performance of individual employees. Take a look at how much you get out of employees versus how much you pay them.
Employees might be a bit nervous about your new methods of close observation and evaluation. This is acceptable and sometimes even beneficial, as employees will make an increased effort if they know their performance is being tracked. However, you don't have to be an intimidating taskmaster. This is a good opportunity to mix in positive reinforcement and show your appreciation for your team. You can offer incentives, such as public recognition, time off or a share in productivity gains. Whatever mode you choose, employees are sure to improve efficiency if they feel that good work is rewarded and they develop a sense of the needs of the business as a whole.
Employees need to have the appropriate equipment and technology to carry out their functions efficiently. A lazy and incompetent worker on a tractor will most likely outperform even the hardest-working person who is plowing manually. Regular maintenance and upgrades of your equipment might seem costly and burdensome, but they are critical to the success of your business. Making sure that your employees have the tools they need to get the job done will drastically improve your output per dollar spent or per unit of time. Keeping equipment up to par also prevents on the job injuries, possible lawsuits and time lost to malfunctions.
Skill is another side of employee efficiency. Your team must have the requisite skill sets to produce up to par, making on-the-job training and education generally worthwhile. Even though specialization and division of labor are important, your team's efficiency can benefit greatly through cross-training, which gives workers a broader perspective and an understanding of the context in which their work fits. It allows them to help each other and to prioritize more effectively, resulting in overall efficiency. This increased workforce agility allows workers to shift their capacity to where it is needed and reduces problems due to worker absences.
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Following her acceptance into iPOP! after try-outs in Fort Walton Beach, Michelle Bryant is talking positively about her fast-approaching opportunity. In her mind, there are no ifs, ands or buts. She�s going. Period.
However, to participate in the program, Michelle must raise about $5,000 � and she needs to do it fast.
Michelle is signed with a New Orleans talent agency, which recently raised the possibility of her being cast as an extra in the HBO series �Treme.� However, the exposure budding performers receive at iPOP! reaches a wider audience, she said.
Locally, Michelle has garnered some name recognition. She has appeared in several Crestview High School drama productions, most recently appearing in May in �The Sound of Music� as Marta, one of the singing von Trapp children. She�s appeared on the Pearl Tyner Auditorium stage in �Touchtone M for Murder,� �The 21st Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee� and �Seussical the Musical.� She hones her already impressive vocal talents as a member of the elite Destiny show choir of the Crestview High chorus. In October, she was voted the Bulldogs� Homecoming queen.
In California, Michelle will do more than perform before an audience of casting directors, talent managers and theatrical agents. There are professional development and educational components to iPOP.
The program gives participants a taste of the entertainment world, including auditioning before professionals responsible for casting films, commercials and television shows, and for populating fashion show runways, according to the iPOP! website.
�Every performer auditions for qualified professionals who are currently working in the industry,� the iPOP website states. �Some will walk away with cash awards and scholarships and some will find success after the event in the acting, modeling and singing arenas.
Though Tinseltown visions dance in her head, Michelle concentrates on the latest high school production. When �It�s a Wonderful Life� opens Friday evening, Michelle will experience theatre from a different perspective than she�s used to.
As she prepares for the upcoming show, Michelle has been seeking sponsorships to attend iPOP. She hopes to attract local businesses willing to invest in her dream of becoming a professional entertainer. It�s a big investment, but it�s also an incredible opportunity, Michelle said. It could even propel her to national recognition.
There�s just no way a price tag could be attached to experience that valuable, Michelle said.
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Billionaire Mark Cuban offered some advice to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) this week, urging the newly anointed congresswoman to avoid the “bad habit” of partisanship when relaying her message to the masses.
An avowed socialist, Ocasio-Cortez rocketed to political stardom during the 2018 midterm elections after unseating fellow Democrat Joe Crowley en route to the U.S. House of Representatives. The congresswoman engaged in a war of words with House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) last weekend after he criticized her proposal to pay for a “Green New Deal” policy initiative by imposing a 70 percent tax on the rich.
“My point is that right now Pelosi=McCarthy=Schumer=McConnell=all the same. Now would be a great time for the new generation of politicians, across the board, to take a new approach. We need you to represent us all. The partisan approach doesn’t work,” Cuban wrote.
Cuban, who appears on ABC’s “Shark Tank” and owns the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, has also mulled the possibility of running for office. He is frequently mentioned as a potential presidential candidate in 2020.
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Happy Sunday. FRONT PAGE EDITORIAL -- BIRMINGHAM NEWS, HUNTSVILLE TIMES, PRESS-REGISTER (MOBILE) -- “STAND FOR DECENCY, REJECT ROY MOORE”: “This election is a turning point for women in Alabama. A chance to make their voices heard in a state that has silenced them for too long.
“During the phone call on Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Ryan, who had campaigned heavily for Mr. Johnson in 2016, posed an essential question, according to the senator: ‘What are you going to need?’ What Mr. Johnson needs … is for the bill to treat more favorably small businesses and other so-called pass-through entities -- businesses whose profits are distributed to their owners and taxed at rates for individuals. Such entities, including Mr. Johnson’s family-run plastics manufacturing business, account for more than half of the nation’s business income, and the senator says the tax bill would give an unfair advantage to larger corporations.
-- IT’S WORTH NOTING: This is hardly the first time Johnson has clashed with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his GOP leadership team. He also fought with them over how the Obamacare repeal process played out. He is just the first Senate Republican out of the gate opposing the bill. Just because the House GOP tax overhaul was on the fast track and didn’t face many hiccups, don’t expect the same to be true in the Senate.
FOR EXAMPLE… JAKE TAPPER talks with SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-MAINE) on CNN’S “STATE OF THE UNION: TAPPER: “You said this week that Republicans made a big mistake when they changed the tax bill to include this repeal of the Affordable Care Act individual mandate because that -- removing that could raise taxes or payment -- health care payments, premiums, for millions of Americans. If that provision stays in the tax bill, will that mean a ‘no’ vote from you?” COLLINS: “Well, first of all, I think we need to distinguish between taking away insurance from people who already have it, which is what the health care bill said we considered earlier this year would have done, versus removing a fine on people who choose not to have insurance. And that’s … disproportionately 80 percent on those who make under $50,000.
MORE TAX DRAMA IN THE STATES -- “In Democrat-led state capitals, GOP tax reform push could scramble fiscal plans,” by Laura Nahmias in New York, Katherine Landergan in New Jersey and Carla Marinucci in California: “The Republican tax reform push in Washington is setting off budgetary alarm bells in high-tax states like New York, California and New Jersey, in the latest political skirmish to pit national Republicans against Democratic state and big city leaders.
“With Republicans intent on shrinking or repealing the state and local tax deduction, California officials are worried that the House-passed tax bill, and the emerging Senate measure, will force local governments to reduce taxes and make big cuts to schools and social services. In New York, where New York City and state revenues are heavily reliant on just a handful of wealthy tax filers, budget watchdogs fear federal tax changes could trigger the flight of those residents. And in New Jersey, plans for a new millionaire’s tax, one of incoming Gov. Phil Murphy’s biggest campaign promises, are already being reined in as the Democratic-led New Jersey Senate waits on the outcome of any federal tax plan.
TROUBLE FOR FRANKEN -- A1 of the STAR TRIBUNE -- “Sidelined by scandal, Sen. Al Franken faces questions about ability to do his job,” by Jennifer Brooks and Erin Golden: “Suddenly a senator whose statewide approval rating stood at 58 percent in the last Star Tribune Minnesota Poll is facing calls to resign — even from prominent Minnesota DFLers and deeply disappointed supporters.
-- TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN?: STAR LEDGER FRONT PAGE: “Why this N.J. Republican keeps voting for things that could hurt Jersey” (print headline: “MacArthur is showing affinity for risk-taking: Representative’s tax stance could hurt N.J., his future”): “In just his third term in office, Rep. Tom MacArthur is helping to shape legislation in a way lawmakers who've been here a long time can only dream of.
BUT, BUT, BUT -- EMILY HOLDEN in Bonn, Germany: “The White House goaded activists at the international climate talks by pushing coal and other fossil fuels. But behind closed doors, U.S. negotiators stuck to their Obama-era principles on the 2015 Paris deal — despite President Donald Trump’s disavowal of the pact. State Department negotiators at the U.N. conference that ended Saturday hewed to the United States’ long-established positions on the details of how to carry out the Paris agreement. And that's the U.S. role that most foreign political leaders sought to highlight, despite the low expectations inspired by Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda and his dismissal of human-caused climate change as a hoax.
-- TONIGHT ON “KASIE D.C.”: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, Katty Kay, Ashley Parker, Jonathan Swan, Leigh Ann Caldwell, Ken Dilanian, Paul Kane, Paul Singer, Gen. Barry McCaffrey and Azmat Khan.
GREAT STORY -- SCOTT BROWN IN NEW ZEALAND -- “Scott Brown’s pay is $155,000 per year. The benefits are priceless,” by the Boston Globe’s Joshua Miller in Wellington, New Zealand: “Of the waves that followed from Donald Trump’s 2016 tsunami, Brown’s ascension from the everyman-with-a-pickup who lost two U.S. Senate races in two years in two states to US ambassador to New Zealand ranks among the most unlikely. And, for him, the most fortunate.
“The island nation is a paradisiacal land of jade hills dotted with grazing sheep, golden-sand beaches surrounded by Jurassic Park-like jungles, snow-capped peaks that rise steeply from azure fjords, and pastoral villages serving gourmet meals and world-class wine.
2020 WATCH -- “Don’t trust politicians to solve our problems, U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse tells Iowa crowd,” by the Des Moines Register’s Jason Noble: “Don’t look to politics to solve the pressing problems in American culture or address looming technological and economic changes that will rearrange American society, U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse told an Iowa audience Saturday. Politicians, he said, simply aren’t up to the task.
SPOTTED: Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) at the Elton John concert in Bangor, Maine, last night. “She seemed to particularly enjoy his rendition of ‘Daniel,’” per our tipster.
--SPOTTED: Wolf Blitzer and Dana Bash cutting the challah, Spencer Garrett, David Chalian, Alex Moe and Derek Flowers, Joy Lin, Juana Summers, John Legittino, Lauren Pratapas, Polson Kanneth and Sandhya Kotha, Ben Kochman, Rob Yoon, Katie Hinman, Sean and Ashley Kennedy.
OUT AND ABOUT -- SPOTTED at the So Others Might Eat Gala Saturday night at the National Building Museum: Tom Donohue, Suzanne Clark, Bill Conway, Jack Gerard, Matthew Say, Jim McCarthy, Wayne Berman and the winners of this year’s Humanitarians of the Year award, Jane and Steve Caldeira of the Consumer Specialty Products Association.
-- SPOTTED at the “Wonder Woman”-themed birthday party for BBC’s Suzanne Kianpour at Lapis Saturday night: Andrew Rafferty, Neil Grace, Molly Weaver, Walt Cronkite Jr., Lauren French, Paul Kane, Lauren Culbertson, Anastasia Dellaccio, Nikki Schwab, Brendan Kownacki, Sophie Pyle, Chris Brown, Lindsay Walters, Sean Weppner and Richard Strauss.
-- Bert Gomez threw a party celebrating wife Susie Santana’s birthday Saturday night on the W hotel rooftop where guests salsa danced till midnight and were treated to cupcakes and the “Susie Q” specialty cocktail, according to a tipster. SPOTTED: Estuardo Rodriguez, Lyndon Boozer, Maria Cardona, Angela Arboleda, Laurie Saroff, Cristina Antelo and Miguel Franco.
... Brad Bauman … Jason Dumont … John Axelrod, MSNBC alum now at BerlinRosen, is 26 ... Lauren McCulloch of “Meet the Press” ... Obama DOJ alum Dena Iverson DeBonis … Chris Harlow ... Eric Finkbeiner ... Mike Deutsch, FAA attorney … Matt Allen ... Beth Mickelberg … Lynne Walton ... Patrick K. O’Donnell ... Andrew Sollinger, EVP of subscriptions at Business Insider... Cait Graf, VP of comms at The Nation ... Ivan Levingston ... Alexander Heffner is 28 ... Ellen Silva of NPR ... Shelley Hearne (h/ts Jon Haber) … Charlie Siguler ... Geoff Sokolowski ... Neil Bjorkman, VP of legislative affairs at the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum … Hannah McLeod … Michael Reynold … Amber Manko … Bush 43 W.H. alum Ivvete Diaz ... Bush 43 HHS alum Mary Kay Mantho, now director at GSK ... Ivette Diaz ... Shannon Vilmain ... Barb Leach ... Julie Cassidy … David O’Boyle ... Ricky Wilson.
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The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) on Monday announced the names of shortlisted candidates to be interviewed in April for a number of judicial positions in various superior courts, including two vacancies at the Constitutional Court.
The announcement follows the commission’s call in October last year for nominations to fill the vacancies.
The 22 shortlisted candidates will be notified of the date, time and venue of their interviews.
The commission also announced on Monday that it will interview justice Xola Mlungisi Petse following his nomination by President Cyril Ramaphosa for the vacant position of deputy president of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA).
Ramaphosa nominated Petse on February 2, in accordance with section 174(3) of the constitution, which states that the president, after consulting the JSC, appoints the president and deputy president of the SCA.
“The president thus seeks the views of the JSC on the suitability or otherwise of justice Petse for the position of deputy president of the SCA,” the JSC said in a statement.
There are six candidates for two vacancies at the Constitutional Court who will be interviewed by the JSC at its April sitting.
The constitution states that JSC must prepare a list of nominees with three names more than the number of appointments to be made and then submit that list to the president.
Candidates to be interviewed for the Constitutional Court vacancies are high court judges Annali Basson, Patricia Goliath, Jody Kollapen and Fayeeza Kathree-Setiloane and SCA judges Stevan Majiedt and Zukisa Tshiqi.
The JSC will also interview nine judges for five vacancies at the SCA. They are Daniel Dlodlo, Trevor Gorven, Caroline Nicholls, Yvonne Mbatga, Pieter Meyer, Fikile Mokgohloa, Selewe Mothle, Clive Plasket and Owen Rogers.
The JSC will also interview Feziwe Renqe and Onica van Papendorp for a single vacancy at the Grahamstown high court.
Labour court judges Edwin Molahlehi and André van Niekerk will be interviewed for the vacant position of deputy judge president of the labour and labour appeal courts.
Judges Bulelwa Pakati and Mmathebe Phatsoane will be interviewed for the vacant deputy judge president position at the Northern Cape division of the high court.
No candidates were shortlisted for a vacancy at the electoral court.
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After Kevin’s horrific leg injury, everyone is asking: will he ever play basketball again? Dr. Glashow, co-chief of sports medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center, tells HollywoodLife.com exclusively if Kevin will ever be back on the court. Read on for details!
After Louisville sophomore Kevin Ware broke his right leg during a game against Duke University, the basketball player was rushed to the hospital and underwent emergency surgery. After a successful surgery, Kevin is now focused on healing, but what does the future for his career hold?
Kevin Ware’s Basketball Career: Will He Ever Play Again?
Dr. Glashow, the co-chief of sports medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center, tells HollywoodLife.com exclusively that not only will Kevin play basketball again, but he could be healed in time for next season!
Although Kevin will be able to play basketball again, he has a long road to recovery ahead of him before he’ll be back on the court. After he’s recovered from surgery, Kevin’s next step will be physical therapy, according to Dr. Glashow.
HollywoodLifers, do YOU think Kevin will play basketball again? Vote below!
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A broken speed camera in Leeds is flashing drivers who pass through it travelling at BELOW the speed limit.
The speed camera on York Road in Killinbeck Leeds has a 40mph speed limit.
But the camera has malfunctioned and drivers have contacted the Yorkshire Evening Post to tell us that they have been flashed by the camera even when travelling below the speed limit this morning.
A concerned motorist contacted us to say: "There is a bit of worry about it. It's a busy stretch of road (as is all of York Road) so it's a wonder as to how many people have been flashed by it.
"There must be thousands of cars driving along there on a daily basis. People are asking if they will get a letter/fine that they then have the annoyance of appealing?
"Although you know you haven't exceeded the 40mph limit, if you see a flash you automatically start questioning yourself!"
A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police has confirmed that the camera has malfunctioned.
The camera is not currently being enforced, say police, meaning that those flashed by the broken camera will not get a ticket for travelling lower than 40mph through the camera, even if they see a flash.
Someone has been dispatched to fix the camera.
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8i announced today it has launched a web player, the 8i Portal, for its volumetric 3D video of people in virtual reality.
Using 8i’s technology and VR goggles, you’ll be able to walk around a person inside a virtual environment to see their entire being. The Wellington, New Zealand-based startup said its VR platform will allow you to view fully volumetric 3D video.
Previously, VR cameras could record a partial torso of a person, but the 8i Portal goes beyond that. It enables “complete freedom of movement,” and it gives you a sense of “presence,” or the feeling that you are there in the virtual space with the person. It creates a more “emotional connection with the person you are watching,” the company said in the video below.
8i’s platform will let you create, experience, and share immersive 3D video of real people — for virtual reality, augmented reality, and the web. I’m not sure how it can be used for games, but you can see how it could give you a unique perspective at a music concert or theatrical performance.
Linc Gasking, who previously ran countingdown.com (which DreamWorks acquired), and Eugene d’Eon, formerly of Weta Digital and Nvidia, founded the startup in 2014.
To date, 8i has raised $14.8 million in funding from investors including RRE Ventures, Founders Fund Science, Horizons Ventures, Samsung Ventures, Dolby Family Ventures, Signia Venture Partners, Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments, Sound Ventures, Inevitable Ventures, Freelands, and Advancit Capital.
The new 8i Portal is a volumetric VR player for Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive VR platforms. If you use the Oculus Rift or Vive headsets, you can view cool VR videos of people who look real, not computer-generated, and move around them, make eye contact, and feel “true presence,” the company said.
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Noel Gallo, an organ builder who designed a new organ at Xewkija parish church and Paolo Oreni, an international organist from Italy, gave a two-hour masterclass to organists and other musicians at the church. They also briefed pianists on the basics of organ performance and gave demonstrations on how organs are made and how they work. At the end of the session Oreni and Sara Musumeci also performed music by Bach, Liszt and Reubke on the same organ. This was part of a series of concerts and masterclasses given by Gallo, Oreni and Musumeci in Malta and Gozo to encourage people explore the beauty of this instrument. Picture shows Gallo playing the organ watched by Musumeci and Oreni.
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A Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #5 Review – Where Is Walter Jones?
PENCILLERS: Thony Silas, Corin Howell. Cover by Jamal Campbell.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #5 tells us that before Tommy became Rita Repulsa’s evil Green Ranger, she made a play for Zack, the Black Ranger. After being “upstaged” by Jason during a fight, Goldar and the putties abduct Zack so Rita can make her pitch. Obviously, Zack doesn’t accept. But how do the events of this issue impact Zack’s relationship to the team? And what happens when Zack tells Zordon?
Rita tempting one of the Rangers toward the dark side is such a simple, classic tale. It’s perfect for this series. I’m not sure I wouldn’t have gone with Billy instead of Zack, especially considering the scene we saw in issue #2. He was comparing himself to the others, and he seemed to become self conscious and bitter. If Rita could have seen that, she might have exploited it. On the other hand, we’ve seen some curious behavior from Zack in this series. He’s been very suspicious and apprehensive about Tommy. This issue seems to explain why. This experience gives him a negative connection to the Green Ranger that we never knew about.
The Zack we’ve seen in this series isn’t the one I expected. On the show, Walter Jones played a fun-loving dancer. Zack is in love with life, and he’s not afraid to show it. That’s not the character we’ve seen in this series. For the most part he’s been very straight faced. I understand he’s in a very tense storyline. But flashes of personality aren’t going to hurt anything, are they?
In essence, what we need in this book is a little more Walter Jones.
Fussy Fanboy Moment: After Zack is abducted, he wakes up in Rita’s Dark Dimension, which we saw in the show. But in one of the “Green Candle” episodes, which these events obviously predate, Jason says he and Tommy are the only Rangers that have been there.
On the plus side, Higgins sneaks in what seems to be a hint at Zack going to the Peace Conference later in the series. He tells Zordon, “I need to do more … I don’t care about leading. It’s not like that.” I like that second line. It speaks to why Rita’s plan for Zack doesn’t work. He’s imperfect like anyone else, but in the end he’s selfless. It’s more about the good that’s being done, as opposed to the glory you get from it.
The opening sequence, set in Italy, is a lot of fun. The Rangers face Rita’s monstrous take on The Vitruvian Man, who can apparently only speak in da Vinci quotes. Afterward, they receive some fanfare on the ground. We even have the prime minister in the middle of the action. This is yet another example of Higgins doing something that never could have happened on the show.
Thony Silas tags in on pencils for this issue. His style isn’t dramatically different from Hendry Prasetya’s, though his characters are slightly better at emoting. His Rita is particularly sinister. Again, his Zack seems very reserved and stoic, which is not the character we’re used to.
“The Ongoing Adventures of Bulk & Skull” still doesn’t do much for me. Though we do get a surprise in this issue: The BOOM! Studios debut of Lieutenant Stone, Bulk & Skull’s foil from seasons 3 and 4. I’d always been under the impression they’d never met before. Either way, I’m glad to see the putty patroller story is over. On to (hopefully) better things.
Higgins pleasantly surprised me with this Zack story, by following up on a plot seed he’d planted as far back as issue #1. It makes you wonder what else he might come back to in future issues. Whether it’s how Billy sees his role on the team, Jason feeling threatened by Tommy, or something else fans may have wondered about. There’s so much fertile ground to cover, and I’m hopeful that we’ve only scratched the surface.
This entry was posted in Comic Books/Graphic Novels and tagged Billy Cranston, Black Ranger, BOOM! Studios, Bulk & Skull, comic book reviews, comic books, Corin Howell, Green Ranger, Jamal Campbell, Kyle Higgins, Leonardo da Vinci, Megazord, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #5 (2016), Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (BOOM! Studios), Pink Ranger, Power Rangers, Red Ranger, Rita Repulsa, Rob Siebert, single issue reviews, Steve Orlando, superhero comics, superheroes, The Vitruvian Man, Thony Silas, Tommy Oliver, Walter Emanuel Jones, Zack Taylor, Zordon on 07/21/2016 by primaryignition.
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Florida Institute of Technology quarterback Brandon Ziarno.
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Florida Institute of Technology quarterback Brandon Ziarno was arrested Friday on marijuana charges after a routine traffic stop yielded 65.7 grams of pot in small, plastic bags, according to police.
Ziarno, 21, told officers he would tell them anything they wanted to know after he was pulled over for running a stop sign and police smelled marijuana coming from his vehicle on Country Club Road, News 6 partner Florida Today reported.
Police reports state that Ziarno, a Melbourne Central Catholic graduate, confessed to selling marijuana to a "few" of his Panthers teammates.
Ziarno was charged with possession of cannabis over 20 grams and possession of cannabis with intent to sell or deliver.
For the past two seasons, Ziarno played backup to starting quarterback Marquis Cato Robins, who was also arrested on a DUI charge after police say he got drunk and crashed into a Melbourne home.
Cato was then suspended from the team, allowing Ziarno to step in during a playoff game during the team's first postseason run during only its fourth year as a team. Cato was reinstated as starting quarterback for the 2017 season.
Ziarno, heading into his junior year at Florida Tech, passed for 7,000 yards during his high school career at MCC before signing with the Division II Panthers.
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ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. - Commissioners in St. Johns County voted unanimously to postpone any legislative action against a localized ban of a substance that the DEA has classified as a "drug of concern."
According to a report by the St. Augustine Record, 19 speakers during a Tuesday night commission meeting defended their right to use kratom, speaking about the health benefits they'd recieved while battling fibromyalgia and anxiety. Commissioners agreed to table any action until at least May, after the Legislative session.
ORIGINAL STORY: Could drug with opioid-like properties be banned in St. Johns County?
The FDA has warned people against using kratom, saying it has properties similar to those of opioids. It's legal in the U.S. aside from Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Tennessee, Vermont, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.
There are no restrictions on kratom in Florida, expect in Sarasota County, where it's banned.
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APATZINGAN, Mexico — Federal forces struggled to bring order to western Mexico Wednesday as vigilantes battled a vicious drug cartel that apparently tried to reassert its authority by burning a downtown pharmacy to enforce its orders that no businesses should open.
The fire attack came just two blocks from the Apatzingan city center where, the day before, dozens of federal police had paraded in an impressive display of force meant to re-impose order in a region where heavily armed vigilantes have taken up a freelance fight against the drug gang.
An employee of the pharmacy said two men pulled up with jerry cans of gasoline and began dousing the store and its merchandise. “They just told us to get out, because they were going to burn the place,” she said.
The employee, part of whose hair was burned off in the attack, refused to give her name for fear of reprisals.
Owners of other stores have said that cartel gunmen have ordered them to close or risk being burned down. Another pharmacy employee, who gave her name only as Norma, said the increased federal security that arrived this week appeared to have done little to discourage the Knights Templar cartel, which has subjected local residents to systematic extortion for years.
But federal forces have other challenges, as well. The local police in Apatzingan were considered so untrustworthy that the entire 300-man force was relieved of duty and sent out of town for background checks.
Officials from the federal and Michoacan state governments met until late Tuesday with leaders of “self-defense” groups.
While refusing to give up their weapons, vigilante leaders appeared to be seeking a cooling of tensions.
“We have to be discreet with our weapons and not move up and down the highways with them,” said Hipolito Mora, a lime grower who leads the self-defense group in the town of La Ruana, after the meeting.
Interior Secretary Miguel Angel Osorio Chong confirmed the talks had taken place, and said the government was offering jobs as police to qualified members of the self-defense forces.
The spokesman for the vigilante movement, Estanislao Beltran, previously said the vigilantes weren’t interested in such offers. “We don’t want jobs as policemen. We’re fighting for the freedom of our families,” he said.
The talks came after soldiers clashed with townspeople in Antunez, where at least two men were reportedly killed during the confrontation that began late Monday. Video of the clash aired by Milenio Television showed a chaotic scene in which angry townspeople scuffled with soldiers and apparently tried to grab the gun and equipment of at least one soldier.
The unrest is in a region of Michoacan known as Tierra Caliente, a farming area rich in limes, avocados and mangos where vigilante groups have been trying to drive out the Knights Templar drug cartel. After a weekend of firefights, the government announced Monday that it would take on security duties in the area.
Throughout Tuesday, federal police officers and soldiers set up roadside checkpoints just yards from roadblocks manned by vigilantes on routes into towns controlled by self-defense groups, but there were no attempts to take weapons from the civilians.
One federal officer who was not authorized to speak to the press said they had no orders to disarm anyone, or to try to take towns held by vigilantes, who have surrounded Apatzingan, which is said to be a Knights Templar stronghold.
Hundreds of federal police officers poured into Apatzingan, the region’s main city, in pickup trucks mounted with machines guns, armored vehicles and buses. They massed in the city’s main square.
Critics have suggested that some self-defense groups have been infiltrated by the rival New Generation cartel, which the vigilantes vehemently deny.
After initially arresting vigilantes months ago, the federal government has appeared to be working with them recently. The army and federal police have provided helicopter cover and road patrols while self-defense groups attacked the cartel, but never intervened in the battles.
Self-defense group leaders said they were coordinating the highway blockades in the 17 municipalities they control to keep out soldiers and federal police.
Felipe Diaz, a leader of vigilantes in Coalcoman, said close to 1,000 men, women and children helped block the main highway until soldiers and dozens of federal police in four buses and 15 pickup trucks left the area.
Associated Press writers Olga R. Rodriguez, E. Eduardo Castillo and Katherine Corcoran in Mexico City contributed to this report.
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He and a neighbor managed to lure the horse toward them with a handful of grass, Sickinger said, and they even petted the horse for a bit. Sickinger had a strap he planned to use to bridle the horse, but he said better judgment took over and he decided the horse was too wild to control even if he could wrangle it.
Sickinger told a St. Clair County sheriff’s deputy the horse might belong to a neighbor. There are several horse farms in the area, but none came forward as the owner, Sickinger said.
Moments after Sickinger started petting the horse, a truck drove by and the horse followed after it. No one would see the horse until more than a week later.
On Wednesday, area resident Aranza Lee spotted the horse in a soybean field near Imbs Station and Wagner roads, less than a mile from Sickinger’s home. She captured a video of the horse running freely through the field and shared it to the Millstadt News Facebook page. By Thursday afternoon, the post had more than 400 shares, but no one had come forward as the owner.
“I mean, how weird is that?” said Sara Yoch of Smithton, a self-described horse-lover.
Lt. Alan Haake of the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department said the department has received several reports over the past three weeks about the missing horse, but he said no one has come forward as the owner, nor has anyone been able to catch it.
Yoch was out at the intersection of Otten and Wagner roads Thursday afternoon with a bucket of feed and a lead, looking for the horse. She said she was out in the same area Wednesday for about four hours, but didn’t have any luck.
She warned area residents to avoid approaching the horse if they aren’t familiar with how horses behave, and to slow down when driving through the area. Yoch said a horse standing in a road on a dark night can cause serious damage to a vehicle and hurt the driver, as well as the horse, of course.
It’s possible the horse was dumped, according to Stephanie Goepfert, a member of the Lincoln Trail Riders in O’Fallon. It can easily cost more than $500 a month to care for a horse, Goepfert said, and it’s possible the owner could not afford to keep it.
On its own, the horse could get sick or injured, Goepfert added.
“They can survive for a period of time in the wilderness, but if they’re a domesticated animal, they’re relying on a certain diet. It can be bad for them,” Goepfert said.
They can survive for a period of time in the wilderness, but if they’re a domesticated animal, they’re relying on a certain diet. It can be bad for them.
The most recent sign of the horse was a bedded-down area next to a creek near where the horse was spotted on Tuesday, Lee said.
There was no sign of the horse as of Thursday afternoon, though several groups were planning to head out and search for it.
Anyone who spots the horse can call the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department at 618-207-4374.
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Wonderful building lot it Clarksville's Premier subdivision, Merifield Acres. 0.71 Acres with a three bedroom Certification Letter for a septic system. Almost touches the CORPS of Engineers lake front property. Quite hidden property prefect for a retirement home of a lake country getaway.
Five Acres in the popular Ivy Hill area at Buggs Island Kerr Lake. Near the amenities of Island Creek Dam with boat launch and lake access. Zoned R2 so your options for a dwelling near the Lake are wide open.
A wooded lot that borders COE Land to the Lake. The added buffer behind offers additional privacy and room to roam. So near the amenities of Island Creek Park with boat launch in the community. Wooded and secluded with Buggs Island Kerr Lake only a walk away.
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The latest report from Violence Policy Center.
I find it ironic and sad that the very day an annual report on violence against women was released, a famed pro athlete was kicked off his team for slugging his wife in the face.
By now you’ve probably heard that Ray Rice, the Baltimore Ravens star running back, was caught on camera hitting his then-fiance and knocking her out with the single blow in an elevator . The March incident cost him a two-game suspension, but when TMZ released the video showing the act, the Ravens terminated his contract and the NFL suspended him indefinitely.
Today I captured the seriousness of domestic violence. The report from the Violence Policy Center shows that South Carolina is ranked the second worst state in the nation for violence against women. The report notes that 50 women were killed in 2012. Spartanburg County had four in 2012. The county has seen two husband-on-wife homicides so far this year and DV cases are some of the most common ones among daily incident reports here. Local leaders tell me it is a significant combination of problems that all need to be dealt with in order to change the status quo surrounding violence against women. Much of it starts with a serious culture change, they tell me.
I was baffled when a colleague of mine pointed out the Fox News morning show “Fox & Friends.” The anchors on the program somehow find a way to joke about Ray Rice knocking out his now-wife and dragging her limp body out of the elevator.
“I think the message is take the stairs,” one anchor quips.
We got right to the point during an interview today with the victim services director at SAFE Homes, a domestic violence shelter and coalition in Spartanburg County.
The gist of the interview was to hold people accountable for their actions and for society to never turn a blind eye.
My full story on the violence against women ranking in South Carolina is at goupstate.com and in Tuesday’s Spartanburg Herald-Journal.
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The bullpen collapsed again as the Diamondbacks lost for the 13th time in the past 19 games.
DENVER – The cast has changed for the Diamondbacks, only they keep playing out the same tired script, one brutal night after another. In a deathly quiet visitors’ clubhouse, players sat motionless in front of their lockers late Wednesday night, seemingly stunned by the realization that their misery could reach new depths.
Yoshihisa Hirano, only recently given the reins in the closer’s role, became the latest Diamondbacks reliever to get beat in excruciating fashion, serving up D.J. LeMahieu’s opposite-field, walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth of a 5-4 loss to the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night.
The Diamondbacks were two outs away from shaving their deficit in the National League West to just 1 1/2 games. Instead, it could grow to 4 1/2 games by the time they leave town on Thursday evening.
Handed a 4-3 lead in the ninth, Hirano allowed a leadoff single to Gerardo Parra, a hard-hit ball that first baseman Paul Goldschmidt could not handle, and, two batters later, Hirano left a fastball over the plate that LeMahieu smacked into the right-field seats.
They did get a lead. They did get a solid outing from lefty Patrick Corbin. And they did get good relief work through the eighth inning. But while the ninth was a disaster, the Diamondbacks’ offense once again gave the pitching staff little breathing room.
With one out in the fourth, Alex Avila launched a solo home run to center field to extend the Diamondbacks’ lead to 4-2. It was the last baserunner the Diamondbacks would have, as the Rockies retired 17 consecutive batters through the end of the game.
Rockies relievers recorded 15 of those outs, marking the first time in the franchise’s 25-year history the bullpen recorded five perfect innings.
It was the eighth consecutive game decided by one run that the Diamondbacks have lost. This season, they’re just 18-28 in one-run games.
But the Diamondbacks’ recent misery is not limited to one-run games. Nineteen games ago, they were a first-place team. But their 6-13 stretch has resulted in a five-game swing in the standings, with the Diamondbacks now sitting in third place with 16 games remaining.
Parra smoked the first pitch he saw from Hirano on one hop to Goldschmidt. It came off his bat at 98 mph, and Goldschmidt tried to play the ball to his left on a short hop. He couldn’t do so cleanly.
After a Charlie Blackmon sac bunt, LeMahieu hit a 1-1 fastball, a pitch that Hirano wanted down and away but instead went up and over the plate.
“It got away and it was kind of up where he could hit it,” Hirano said, speaking through interpreter Kelvin Kondo.
It was the eighth time the Diamondbacks’ bullpen had suffered a loss in the past 15 games.
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System Of A Down have confirmed final details of their new album.
The group have announced that the first CD from their new double record ‘Mezmerize’/’Hypnotize’ will be released on May 16.
The second CD, ’Hypnotize’, will follow in the autumn. A new single, ’B.Y.O.B’, is out on May 2.
The album is made up of from 30 songs, which were recorded at producer Rick Rubin’s Laurel Canyon Studio in autumn last year. The album was mixed by Andy Wallace, who also mixed the band’s previous efforts ‘Toxicity’ and ‘Steal This Album!’.
Additionally, the band have announced they will play a extra London date in April ahead of their June tour.
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The final chapter in Roy Andersson's droll trilogy 'on being a human being' introduces three dozen more brilliantly absurd vignettes.
In a Venice Film Festival lineup full of cynicism, suicide and despair, who would expect the new Roy Andersson picture — “the final part of a trilogy on being a human being” — to be the most life-affirming? And yet, from its comic title to the wistful smile that accompanies its over-too-soon last shot, Andersson’s delightfully odd “A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence” finds the Swedish master of comic absurdity feeling downright generous, perched at a comfortable enough distance from this coterie of sad sacks and lonelyhearts to recognize the humor in such painful subjects as mortality, aging, unpaid debts and unrequited love.
Just last year, Ethan Hawke was quoted as referring to “Before Sunrise” and its two sequels as “the lowest-grossing trilogy in the history of motion pictures.” But even he probably hasn’t bought tickets to Andersson’s incomparable triptych — rapturously received by critics, though audiences have proven all but allergic to the first two films, which have cleared barely $100,000 so far in the U.S. The result of four years of rigorous planning and meticulous execution, “Pigeon” could fare slightly better than “Songs From the Second Floor” and “You, the Living” (both of which bowed at Cannes), but only just. At least arthouse programmers can now get creative, treating Andersson’s now-complete tragicomic opus, a decade and a half in the making, as the special event that it is.
“Pigeon” is by far the most accessible of the three films, offering a continuity throughline in the form of novelty salesmen Sam (Nils Westblom) and Jonathan (Holger Andersson), a comedic duo who’d be right at home in a Samuel Beckett or Tom Stoppard play. Here, the Laurel-and-Hardy-esque pair appear in nearly one-third of the film’s 37 fixed-camera compositions, a series of chuckle-inducing tableaux that clock in at just under three minutes apiece on average.
Each of these shots serves as a nearly self-contained comic vignette, like a cross between a “Where’s Waldo” cartoon and a Gregory Crewdson photograph, and the best way to approach them is as you might a large-canvas painting or a Jacques Tati film: Study the faces, soak up the details, allow the eye to wander and the mind to free-associate. Where other directors seek out exceptional moments, Andersson endeavors to capture the poetry of the mundane.
With the exception of one scene, in which twin girls blow bubbles from the balcony of a nondescript apartment building, and another that observes a plumpish new mom (Andersson loves his ladies with a little meat on their bones) cooing over her baby carriage, all the characters here are adults. Most of them have fewer days ahead of them than they do behind, but none seem to truly appreciate the gift of living. Andersson does, and he wants us to recognize it, too.
Right up front, the helmer presents three “meetings with death”: a husband who suffers a heart attack while struggling to uncork a wine bottle; an old lady convinced she can take her handbag to heaven; and a cruise-ship passenger who collapses at the lunch counter, having just paid for his meal (sorry, no refunds). More playful than his fellow Swede Ingmar Bergman, who famously challenged Death to a game of chess, Andersson recognizes that there’s no cheating mortality — though sometimes we can speed it along, like the suicidal CEO glimpsed later in the film. Best just to have a sense of humor about it.
Some critics have mistaken Andersson’s movies as “depressing” (while others have incorrectly labeled him a “commercials director,” failing to understand that he accepted those commissions to finance his painstaking feature ventures). “Droll” would be a better word for the artist’s attitude toward the washed-out blue and beige world he presents. His characters wear white face makeup to enhance their pallor, sleepwalking zombielike through their lives. Even the young couple seen necking on the beach appear to be doing so in slow-motion.
In the interval since his last film, Andersson has embraced hi-def digital cameras, which benefit his aesthetic enormously. Now, the helmer can ensure that even the far-distant background of every scene appears in sharp focus. Though the colors are dreary and the characters numb, compositionally speaking, there’s not a single dull frame in the entire film. Andersson thinks like a painter, following Edward Hopper’s example of enhancing loneliness by depicting it within a greater context. He shoots rooms at an angle, using perspective to direct our eyes toward the activity in adjacent rooms or on the other side of windows, instead of observing everything directly on axis, the way his similarly detail-oriented American namesake, Wes Anderson, insists on doing.
In “Pigeon,” people go about their business in the dreary little boxes of their lives, but they don’t behave like marionettes on strings, but almost like actors on a stage, occasionally turning to address the audience. “Today I feel kind,” announces a cheesemonger, while his wife gestures to the audience to let us know she thinks he’s crazy.
It’s unclear whether the shift to digital has allowed Andersson to manipulate his footage the way directors such as David Fincher and Ruben Ostlund do, using their locked-down cameras to make invisible nips and tucks. Regardless of the method, the film is a master class in comic timing, employing pacing and repetition with the skill of a practiced concert pianist.
Early on, outside a dance studio where the flamenco teacher gets a little too hands-on with one of her pupils, a lady janitor says into her phone, “I’m happy to hear you’re doing fine.” (Mobile phones are a rare nod to modern life in a film that appears to be set in a timeless retro past — and where King Charles XII and his infantry are prone to drop in unannounced, like characters in a Monty Python sketch.) The cleaning woman’s line becomes a hollow platitude echoed by many of the characters by film’s end, and yet, there’s something to be said for merely surviving in such an absurd world as this.
Down on their luck, Sam and Jonathan bill themselves as being in the “entertainment business,” selling plastic vampire teeth and a corny laughing device engineered to amuse. These two friends look like they haven’t smiled in a long, long time. Emerging as the most well-rounded character in the entire trilogy, Jonathan suffers from melancholy spells, culminating in a disturbing dream sequence, where colonial soldiers lead African slaves into a giant copper instrument that produces a beautiful sound as the people inside are being roasted alive. What a curious species are homo sapiens. Judging by the film, we wage war, torture animals and take advantage of one another, and yet, Andersson assures us, things could be worse. In the grand scheme of things, he’s happy to show we’re doing fine.
Production: (Sweden-Norway-France-Germany) A Roy Andersson Filmproduktion production, in co-production with 4 1/2 Fiksjon, Essentail Filmproduction, Parisienne de Production, Sveriges Television, Arte France Cinema, ZDF/Arte, with support from Svenska Filminstitutet, Eurimages Council of Europe, Nordisk Film- och TV Fond, Norska Filmfonden, Film- ind Medienstiftung NRW, CNC. (International sales: Coproduction Office, Paris.) Produced by Pernilla Sandstrom. Executive producers, Sarah Nagel, Isabell Wiegand. Co-producers, Philippe Bober, Hakon Overas.
Crew: Directed, written by Roy Andersson. Camera (color, HD), Istvan Borbas, Gergely Palos; editor, Alexandra Strauss; production designer, Ulf Jonsson, Julia Tegstrom, Nicklas Nilsson, Sandra Parment, Isabel Sjostrand; costume designer, Julia Tegstrom; sound, Robert Hefter, Owe Svensson; casting, Sophia Frykstam, Zora Rux, Katja Wik, Stig-Ake Nilsson, Andrea Eckerbom.
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A live events and bespoke creative technical solutions company based in Loughborough is seeking a technical project manager to join their growing production team.
You may currently be working be working as an audio-visual/AV project manager or technical production manager in live events or you may be a senior AV technician looking to make the next move in your career.
This position will encompass all elements of technical pre-production from developing and designing technical solutions in order to achieve their clients' briefs, through to managing and where appropriate supervising their execution. The projects they undertake include experiential marketing events, conferences, exhibitions and other live corporate events. The successful candidate will be passionate about driving forward improvements in technical production and working with the team to implement innovative technical solutions.
The role will include both UK and international travel and will require the successful candidate to work non-standard working hours including evenings, weekends and bank holidays.
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DAVENPORT - Don Skipper, an administrative assistant at Ridge Community High School, was named the school's head boys basketball coach Wednesday.
Skipper has served as an assistant basketball coach the last two years for the Bolts and had stints as a head coach at McKeel Academy and All Saints' Academy, and was named Coach of the Year three times by the Coaches Association of Polk County, according to a press release from the school.
BABSON PARK - Webber International University will host the 2007 NAIA Region 14 softball tournament today and Friday at the Diamond Plex in Winter Haven.
The opening ceremony will take place at 4:30 p.m., with Webber playing Thomas University (Georgia) on Field A at 5 p.m.
The tournament will continue at noon Friday with the elimination games.
Admission for the tournament is $5 per day or $8 for a two-day pass.
The tournament champions will receive an automatic place in the NAIA National Tournament to be held in Decatur, Ala, May 18-23.
For details, go to and view the softball page or call 863-638-2980.
LAKE WALES - The 13th annual Lake Wales Football golf tournament will be June 2 at the Lake Wales Country Club.
The tournament will start at 8 a.m. The cost will be $75 and play will be in scramble format.
Cost includes lunch and door prizes. Hole sponsors, prize donations and auction items are needed. Major sponsors are also available for $500.
For details, call Rod Shafer at 863-678-4222 or 863-604-3304.
BALTIMORE - Aubrey Huff homered with one out in the 10th inning against his former team, giving the Baltimore Orioles a 1-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Wednesday night.
After James Shields pitched nine brilliant innings for Tampa Bay, Brian Stokes (1-4) faced only two batters before giving up the game's lone run. Ramon Hernandez hit a fly to center before Huff drove a 1-1 pitch over the wall in center, his fourth homer of the season and second against the Devil Rays.
Huff played for five seasons in Tampa Bay and briefly with Houston last year before signing with Baltimore as a free agent in January.
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NEW YORK (AP) — Could the U.S. lose its top credit rating even if a deal is reached to raise the debt limit?
Market analysts and investors increasingly say yes. The outcome won't be quite as scary as a default, but financial markets would still take a blow. Mortgage rates could rise. States and cities, already strapped, could find it more difficult to borrow. Stocks could lose their gains for the year.
"At this point, we're more concerned about the risk of a downgrade than a default," said Terry Belton, global head of fixed income strategy at JPMorgan Chase. In a conference call with reporters Tuesday, Belton said the loss of the country's AAA rating may rattle markets, but it's "better than missing an interest payment."
Even with a deadline to raise the U.S. debt limit less than a week away, many investors still believe Washington will pull off a last-minute deal to avoid a catastrophic default. Washington has until Aug. 2 to raise the country's $14.3 trillion borrowing limit or risk missing a payment on its debt. President Barack Obama and Congressional Republicans have failed to reach an agreement to raise the debt ceiling and pass a larger budget-cutting package. Politicians have tied raising the debt limit and spending cuts together.
But at least one credit rating agency has already made it clear that unless that agreement includes at least $4 trillion in budget cuts over the next decade, the country's AAA rating could be lost. Right now, the proposals under discussion cut around $2 trillion or less.
Standard & Poor's warned earlier this month that there was a 50-50 chance of a downgrade, if Congress and President Obama failed to find a "credible solution to the rising U.S. government debt burden." S&P said it may cut the U.S. rating to AA within 90 days. Passing a $4 trillion agreement could prevent a downgrade, S&P said.
The other chief rating agency, Moody's Investors Service, said the U.S. government would likely keep its top rating if it avoids a default.
Spokesmen from both Moody's and S&P said they wouldn't comment beyond their recent reports.
JPMorgan's Belton said clients have started asking how markets will respond if the U.S. loses its AAA rating. A drop to AA will mean permanently higher borrowing costs for the U.S. government, he said. And because government lending rates act as a floor for other lending rates, mortgages, student loans, corporate debt and other types of loans will become more expensive.
Belton estimates that borrowing costs would rise between 0.60 to 0.70 points. That may not sound like much. But mortgage interest rates, which have hovered around 4.5 percent for the last several weeks, could rise by at least that amount, to more than 5.1 percent.
And for the federal government, it eventually means an extra $100 billion in interest payments to Treasury holders like China each year.
"That's a huge number," Belton said. That $100 billion a year that could be spent elsewhere on everything from education to infrastructure.
An increase in interest rates could soon become a drag on other parts of the economy, experts say. State governments and insurance agencies would also be downgraded — and states are already having financial troubles. Business confidence could sink again, leading to prolonged high unemployment.
But some investors aren't unhappy about the thought of a U.S. debt downgrade. Don Quigley, manager of the $1.5 billion Artio Total Return Bond fund reasons that such a move could provide a buying opportunity. He believes that a downgrade would immediately send the yield of the 10-year bond up to 3.15 percent from its current level of about 3 percent.
If the economy sinks further in part because of higher interest rates, investors would very likely return to buying bonds, Quigley said. That's what they've done during the last several years both during the financial crisis and recession, and again the last several months as the economic recovery has slowed.
Treasurys would keep their allure, in part, because there are few alternatives for large foreign buyers looking for a market big enough to handle massive investments.
"The German market is not big enough and Japan has its own problems," Quigley said.
A cut to the U.S. credit rating could hit stocks harder than bonds. A study by Janney Montgomery Scott looked at rating changes to countries over the past decade. After Spain was downgraded in 2009, Spain's stock market fell 8 percent in three months. A cut to Japan's credit rating in 2011 knocked the country's stock market down 3.4 percent in three months. The study, released in April, suggested the S&P 500 would fall 6% after a U.S. downgrade, erasing all its gains for the year.
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The Las Vegas real estate market got a small reprieve in February; with sales volume at a four-year high for the month and a dip in foreclosure resales helping prices increase slightly from January. A total of 3,698 new and existing houses and condos were sold in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area in February, according to MDA DataQuick. That’s up 9.8% from January and 10.5% from one year ago. A 5.7% increase from January to February is the average, dating back to 1994, DataQuick said. The February 2010 total was the highest for the month since 2006, when 6,065 homes were sold, but 2% below the 16-year average February sales total. It’s the 18th straight month that total sales rose year-over-year. Existing home sales totaled 3,311, up 7.1% from January and up 9.5% from last year. It’s the highest total for February existing sales since 2005. Existing home sales are on a 22-month-long run of monthly year-over-year increases. Foreclosure resales accounted for 59.6% of all resales in February, down from 62% in January and down from 70.6% last year. After peaking in April 2009 at 73.7%, foreclosure resales have declined every month. While foreclosure resales were down, foreclosure proceedings were up. In February, 1,756 homes and condos were foreclosed on in Las Vegas, up 5.3% from January, but down 52.8% from 3,718 foreclosures last year. New home sales totaled 387 in February, up 40% from January and up 20.2% from last year, but it was one of the slowest February sales totals in DataQuick’s 16 years of records, second only to last year. The decline in foreclosure resales and the increase in new home sales helped the median price increase from January, but only slightly. The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the Las Vegas metro area in February was $126,197, up 0.4% from $125,750 in January but down 17.2% from $152,500 a year earlier. DataQuick said the year-over-year decline was the smallest since March 2008, when the median dropped 16% from a year earlier, to $247,925. In addition, sales of homes over $200,000 made up 22.4% of total sales, up from 21.3% in January but down from 30.8% a year earlier. The median sales price is on a 34-month-long run of monthly year-over-year declines and in February 2010, was 59.6% below the peak median of $312,000 in November 2006. The median price for single-family homes was $133,800 in February, down from $135,000 in January and down from $157,000 last year. The median condo sales price was $69,000, even from January, but down 9.2% from $76,000 last year. Nearly half — 49.8% — of borrowers that used mortgages to fund home purchases used government-backed Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. Cash buyers accounted for 51.5% of all February sales, up from 50.4% in January. DataQuick defines cash borrowers as those purchases where there was no indication of a purchase mortgage recorded at the time of sale, but can include those that used alternative financing arrangements and in some cases borrowers might be taking out mortgages after their purchases. Absentee buyers, usually investors, but anyone who indicates at the time of sale that the property tax bill will go to a different address, accounted for 44.6% of all Las Vegas area home sales. However, house flipping declined. Homes sold in February that had previously sold in the past three weeks to six months accounted for 3.7% of all sales, down from 5% in January, but up from 2.6% last year. Write to Austin Kilgore.
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Five of the Menlo Park City Council candidates met up at the Oak City Bar and Grill in Menlo Park on Wednesday night to share campaign stories. The drinks were on Peter Ohtaki, since he received the greatest number of votes. The sixth candidate, Russ Peterson, was unable to attend. Photo by John Woodell.
● Ohtaki, Keith, Cline elected to Menlo Park council.
Whoa, wait! There are three pending council members having a conversation- but where is Peter Carpenter with a Brown Act accusation? What if the new council has to act on something like an Oak City noise complaint case? Will all three have to recuse themselves because they acted like normal human beings and socialized? My goodness!
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Ford is building cars that "talk" with traffic lights, road signs and pedestrians.
At CES 2019 in Las Vegas on Monday, the automaker announced plans to start selling cars that feature this type of technology in 2022.
The technology, called cellular vehicle-to-everything (or C-V2X for short), uses wireless signals to share road data, such as a car's location or the color of a traffic light, with other vehicles.
Ford believes it will make cities safer by better informing drivers of their surroundings, and compares the innovation to the invention of the traffic light in the 19th century.
"The world's first traffic light [helped] people move through a congested London intersection that had become dangerous for pedestrians due to the popularity of horse-drawn carriages," Don Butler, executive director of Ford Connected Vehicle Platform and Product, wrote in a Medium post. "At Ford, 150 years later, we are excited to continue advancing this type of thinking."
But critics says the cost of installing the technology will be burdensome for cash-strapped governments. Corinne Kisner, deputy director of the National Association of City Transportation Officials, called the expense of installing and maintaining vehicle-to-everything technology a major concern. Many municipalities struggle to fill their potholes, let alone install smart city technology. She also described any effort to require a pedestrian to carry a smartphone to guarantee safety as a dangerous paradigm shift.
"It's an unreasonable burden to ask or require people walking in their streets and cities and in front of their homes to carry a signal transmitting device," Kisner said. "The burden needs to be on the driver of the two-ton vehicle, whether it's a human or autonomous technology."
Ford sees things differently. Butler described to CNN Business the example of a pedestrian walking on a dirt road who might be identified by a car with C-V2X because they were carrying a smartphone. Traditionally, a driver would rely on their headlights to see the pedestrian. But Butler stops short of expecting smartphones to be recommended or required for pedestrians.
"It's like the question of will people be permitted to drive once autonomous vehicles become prevalent," Butler said. "That's something we can only speculate about."
Ford isn't the first company to explore outfitting pedestrians with sensors. Siemens, the German conglomerate, began a US Department of Transportation pilot test in Tampa, Florida, last year using pedestrians' smartphones to communicate their location to vehicles. But Siemens officials found the smartphone location data to be so inaccurate that it wasn't useful.
The pilot was reworked to focus on outfitting 1,000 vehicles with sensors, and notifying drivers of nearby vehicles with audio alerts, according to Dave Miller, the head of connected vehicles at Siemens.
Bicycling advocates also argued it was unrealistic to require someone to carry a phone on roads.
"We think the way things are headed, what we need is more smart sensors [built] in the roadway, or infrastructure," Miller told CNN Business.
This is something Ford wants, too. It sees the coming arrival of 5G networks -- the next-generation of internet speed -- as a chance to install vehicle-to-everything technology throughout cities.
"We think there's an opportunity for a win-win that helps offset to a significant degree the cost a city might have to otherwise undertake to deploy this infrastructure," Butler said.
Ford is urging other automakers to install C-V2X in their vehicles.
But there's a long road ahead for Ford to make C-V2X as widespread as the traffic light, which took decades to be popularized.
===
On April 4, 1975, Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft. The small firm used to develop and sell BASIC interpreters. Little did they know that in the next 40 years, their company will become the biggest software firm in the world, and also bag the title for one of the most valuable companies.
Today, there is a little bit of Microsoft in everybody’s life. Whether it is the desktop computer where Microsoft’s Windows has about 90 percent market share or the company’s Office which is unarguably the best productivity suite available. Maybe you are into gaming and own an Xbox One, or your company relies on Azure cloud services.
In the last 40 years, Microsoft -- which once used to sell program language interpreters -- has expanded into several categories, and now makes full-fledged operating systems for not just desktop computers, but smartphones, gaming consoles, servers, as well as Internet of Things devices. Surface tablets and Xbox consoles show the company’s side interest in developing its own hardware modules.
"Early on, Paul Allen and I set the goal of a computer on every desk and in every home. It was a bold idea and a lot of people thought we were out of our minds to imagine it was possible. It is amazing to think about how far computing has come since then, and we can all be proud of the role Microsoft played in that revolution", Gates wrote in an email sent to all Microsoft employees yesterday.
"In the coming years, Microsoft has the opportunity to reach even more people and organizations around the world. Technology is still out of reach for many people, because it is complex or expensive, or they simply do not have access. So I hope you will think about what you can do to make the power of technology accessible to everyone, to connect people to each other, and make personal computing available everywhere even as the very notion of what a PC delivers makes its way into all devices", Gates noted.
"Under Satya's leadership, Microsoft is better positioned than ever to lead these advances. We have the resources to drive and solve tough problems. We are engaged in every facet of modern computing and have the deepest commitment to research in the industry. In my role as technical advisor to Satya, I get to join product reviews and am impressed by the vision and talent I see. The result is evident in products like Cortana, Skype Translator, and HoloLens -- and those are just a few of the many innovations that are on the way".
And this attitude was the reason Windows Phone 7 -- arguably Microsoft's first real take on a mobile operating system-- wasn’t released until 2010. By this time, iPhone had showed its dominance in the world, and Google was upping the ante with Android. Windows Phone is still struggling to gain any substantial market share. The mobile platform still has a wide "app-gap" problem, though the company seems to have found a couple of ways to fix it.
But one of the most exciting things that happened in the company was its decision to open up. Under Nadella, Microsoft finally accepted that it doesn’t have a significant user base in smartphones. The company realized that if it didn't open up to rival platforms, it would miss out on a lot of users. And that’s one of the first things Nadella did after taking the charge of the company. Microsoft launched Office on iOS. Until then Office was only available on Windows, Windows RT, and Windows Phone, and a half-baked mobile version on Android.
The move received an overwhelming response from users, resulting in Office apps -- Word, Excel and PowerPoint -- top the app chart in within 24 hours of their release on the platform. Late last year, the company made premium access to the Office suite free on iOS and Android. Office for iOS was in the works at Microsoft for a long time, but Ballmer used to prioritize its products on Windows devices first. Nadella evidently changed that.
"We have accomplished a lot together during our first 40 years and empowered countless businesses and people to realize their full potential. But what matters most now is what we do next", Gates writes in his email. Microsoft does have a lot of things to look forward to in the coming months and years. Later this year, Microsoft will release Windows 10 for desktop computers, as well as smartphones, IoT devices and Xbox One. In the coming months, Microsoft will also release the next iteration of its productivity suite, Office 2016. For the first time, the company is simultaneously releasing Office on OS X and Windows.
Additionally, Microsoft has showcased a number of products that could change the way we compute and interact with technology. Its augmented reality headset HoloLens is just one example. It will be interesting to see what the company does next and how things work out for it in the coming years.
===
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's (TRC) final report shone a light on Canada's residential school system, a dark chapter in our history with lasting impacts still felt by Indigenous people today. Ontario is working with Indigenous partners to address the legacy of residential schools, close gaps and remove barriers, create a culturally relevant and responsive justice system, support Indigenous culture, and reconcile relationships with Indigenous peoples. True reconciliation goes beyond the TRC's 'Calls to Action'. The Province will continue to look to Indigenous partners for guidance and leadership.
Ontario plans to invest more than $250 million over the next three years on programs and actions focused on reconciliation, which will be developed and evaluated in close partnership with our Indigenous partners.
New Funding: Up to $20 million over three years, including up to $1.4 million in 2016-17 to support the revitalization of the Mohawk Institute Residential School.
Work with Indigenous partners to establish a commemorative monument in Toronto -- dedicated to residential school survivors -- as a site of learning, healing and reconciliation.
Support restoration of the Mohawk Institute Residential School and work with Indigenous partners to develop an interpretation centre.
Identify death records of "lost children" who attended residential schools and contribute to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation archives, locate burial sites and repatriate remains when requested and/or provide memorial ceremonies and markers.
Work to waive fees for Indigenous people seeking to reclaim traditional names, and honour Indigenous traditions by accommodating the use of single names.
Address systemic racism and discrimination directed against Indigenous peoples through an Indigenous-Informed Anti-Racism Strategy.
New Funding: Up to $150 million over three years, including $3.5 million in 2016-17 in life promotion support and $2.3 million in 2016-17 in new mental health and addictions supports.
Establish up to six new or expanded Indigenous Mental Health & Addictions Treatment and Healing Centres.
Help stop the cycle of intergenerational trauma by investing in mental health and wellness programs.
Increase the number of licensed child care spaces and culturally relevant programming off-reserve.
Expand child and family programs on-reserve and, through Indigenous and federal partners, make supports available in more communities.
Through recreation-based programming, work with remote high-need Indigenous communities to identify community priorities for children, youth and families.
Support culturally based suicide prevention strategies for children and youth, and provide crisis intervention, as needed.
Explore reclassifying First Nations/federally operated schools to enhance collaboration between the provincially funded education system and First Nation schools.
Develop an action plan for responding to social emergencies in Northern First Nation communities.
New Funding: Up to $45 million over three years, including $200,000 in 2016-17 in Gladue expansion.
Create more victim services programs for Indigenous peoples.
Establish an Indigenous Language Courts pilot project to help break down language barriers and increase access to justice.
Increase funding to Community Justice Programs that focus on healing and cultural restoration.
Develop culturally appropriate programs, including community supervision, to provide support to Indigenous people accused of crime.
Host a Gladue summit to identify service gaps in the justice system.
Increase the number of Gladue report writers and Gladue aftercare workers.
Enhance healing services and cultural supports for Indigenous inmates in custody and offenders under community supervision.
New Funding: Up to $30 million over three years.
Develop an Indigenous Cultural Revitalization Fund that would support cultural activities and programming in Indigenous communities, including on-reserve and in urban centres.
Host an Indigenous languages symposium with Indigenous partners to review current programs, and to identify community priorities and supports needed for Indigenous languages.
Support youth cultural camps in Indigenous communities.
Create a traditional medicine garden on government-owned property in Toronto.
New Funding: Up to $5 million over three years.
Lead by example and take active steps to apply a model of reconciliation on a daily basis.
Change the name of the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs to the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation.
Reflect the term 'Indigenous' in government ministries and programs, where appropriate.
Discourage the use of names that are considered offensive to Indigenous people in organizations funded by the government.
Engage with Indigenous partners on approaches to enhance participation in the resource sector by improving the way resource benefits are shared.
Work with the federal government to address the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
This document was published on May 30, 2016 and is provided for archival and research purposes.
===
On April 4, 1975, Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft. The small firm used to develop and sell BASIC interpreters. Little did they know that in the next 40 years, their company will become the biggest software firm in the world, and also bag the title for one of the most valuable companies.
Today, there is a little bit of Microsoft in everybody’s life. Whether it is the desktop computer where Microsoft’s Windows has about 90 percent market share or the company’s Office which is unarguably the best productivity suite available. Maybe you are into gaming and own an Xbox One, or your company relies on Azure cloud services.
In the last 40 years, Microsoft -- which once used to sell program language interpreters -- has expanded into several categories, and now makes full-fledged operating systems for not just desktop computers, but smartphones, gaming consoles, servers, as well as Internet of Things devices. Surface tablets and Xbox consoles show the company’s side interest in developing its own hardware modules.
"Early on, Paul Allen and I set the goal of a computer on every desk and in every home. It was a bold idea and a lot of people thought we were out of our minds to imagine it was possible. It is amazing to think about how far computing has come since then, and we can all be proud of the role Microsoft played in that revolution", Gates wrote in an email sent to all Microsoft employees yesterday.
"In the coming years, Microsoft has the opportunity to reach even more people and organizations around the world. Technology is still out of reach for many people, because it is complex or expensive, or they simply do not have access. So I hope you will think about what you can do to make the power of technology accessible to everyone, to connect people to each other, and make personal computing available everywhere even as the very notion of what a PC delivers makes its way into all devices", Gates noted.
"Under Satya's leadership, Microsoft is better positioned than ever to lead these advances. We have the resources to drive and solve tough problems. We are engaged in every facet of modern computing and have the deepest commitment to research in the industry. In my role as technical advisor to Satya, I get to join product reviews and am impressed by the vision and talent I see. The result is evident in products like Cortana, Skype Translator, and HoloLens -- and those are just a few of the many innovations that are on the way".
And this attitude was the reason Windows Phone 7 -- arguably Microsoft's first real take on a mobile operating system-- wasn’t released until 2010. By this time, iPhone had showed its dominance in the world, and Google was upping the ante with Android. Windows Phone is still struggling to gain any substantial market share. The mobile platform still has a wide "app-gap" problem, though the company seems to have found a couple of ways to fix it.
But one of the most exciting things that happened in the company was its decision to open up. Under Nadella, Microsoft finally accepted that it doesn’t have a significant user base in smartphones. The company realized that if it didn't open up to rival platforms, it would miss out on a lot of users. And that’s one of the first things Nadella did after taking the charge of the company. Microsoft launched Office on iOS. Until then Office was only available on Windows, Windows RT, and Windows Phone, and a half-baked mobile version on Android.
The move received an overwhelming response from users, resulting in Office apps -- Word, Excel and PowerPoint -- top the app chart in within 24 hours of their release on the platform. Late last year, the company made premium access to the Office suite free on iOS and Android. Office for iOS was in the works at Microsoft for a long time, but Ballmer used to prioritize its products on Windows devices first. Nadella evidently changed that.
"We have accomplished a lot together during our first 40 years and empowered countless businesses and people to realize their full potential. But what matters most now is what we do next", Gates writes in his email. Microsoft does have a lot of things to look forward to in the coming months and years. Later this year, Microsoft will release Windows 10 for desktop computers, as well as smartphones, IoT devices and Xbox One. In the coming months, Microsoft will also release the next iteration of its productivity suite, Office 2016. For the first time, the company is simultaneously releasing Office on OS X and Windows.
Additionally, Microsoft has showcased a number of products that could change the way we compute and interact with technology. Its augmented reality headset HoloLens is just one example. It will be interesting to see what the company does next and how things work out for it in the coming years.
===
The acting commissioner of Inland Revenue in Papua New Guinea says there is nothing she can do to help an Australian couple who have to pay 8,000 US dollars on a car they donated to charity.
Sydneysiders Edward and Alvina Renyard sent a 1993 Mitsubishi Pajero to Caritas in Madang to help the work of aiding Manam Islanders displaced by volcano eruptions.
Mrs Renyard's relatives are among the displaced people.
But acting inland revenue head, Betty Palaso, says all imported vehicles, even those bound for charities are subject to duty.
"I think it's just unfortunate that Internal Revenue Commissioner was not consulted before these things were brought in. Otherwise we would have advised them that duty would be applicable on this vehicle."
Betty Palaso says she feels for the Renyards but she cannot work outside the law.
===
MAMADOU SAKHO remains unavailable for selection for Liverpool's Europa League semi-final first leg clash with Villarreal in Spain on Thursday (8.05pm).
The defender will not be considered for selection while he is being investigated after admitting to failing a drugs test.
Kolo Toure is set to keep his place in the side in place of the Frenchman.
Striker Christian Benteke, who has not played since the defeat to Southampton on March 20, has travelled with the squad.
With Jordan Henderson and Emre Can injured, Lucas Leiva and James Milner are set to play in central midfield.
Divock Origi, Danny Ings and Joe Gomez remain on the sidelines.
Provisional squad: Mignolet, Clyne, Toure, Lovren, Moreno, Milner, Lucas, Lallana, Firmino, Coutinho, Sturridge, Ward, Skrtel, Smith, Allen, Brannagan, Chirivella, Ojo, Ibe, Benteke.
===
Packed WonderCon panel brings out stars and exclusive sneak peeks.
Footage shown at WonderCon reveals what iconic monster looks like in new film.
Fox panel debuts new look at the maze, featured stars Dylan O'Brien and Will Poulter.
===
In this Sept. 1, 2014 photo released by the U.S. Geological Survey, fluid lava streams from the June 27 lava flow from the Kilauea volcano in Pahoa, Hawaii. The June 27 lava flow is named for the date it began erupting from a new vent. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory issued a warning Thursday, Sept. 4, 2014 to a rural community in the path of a lava flow on Hawaii's Big Island, as the molten rock moved to within a mile of homes. Observatory scientists said lava from the Kilauea volcano could reach the Kaohe Homesteads in five to seven days if it continues advancing through cracks in the earth.
PAHOA, Hawaii — Lava from one of the world's most active volcanos has been advancing at a slower pace the past few days and is now moving parallel to a sparsely populated subdivision on Hawaii's Big Island.
Lava from Kilauea volcano was still at least a mile from any homes in Kaohe Homesteads, Hawaii County Civil Defense Director Darryl Oliveira said.
Oliveira took a helicopter flight over the area Monday and saw the lava had crept about 150 yards from the previous day. It's moving north for now but could still stop or change directions.
"It's been doing that for the last several days," he said of its northern pull. Prior to Friday, it was going northeast toward the subdivision.
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has warned the lava could reach the subdivision in a matter of days.
Oliveira said he didn't anticipate issuing an evacuation order Monday. But residents should be prepared because it's difficult to predict the lava's movement. It was also raining over the flow site, he noted, which meant there wasn't a wildfire threat.
"That's good for today," he said. "But it doesn't get us out of any potential threat down the road. It just means it's going to be a very slow process."
The lava warning has created an "edgy" mood in Puna, the rural region on the southeast side of the Big Island that is at risk from the lava, said Bill Parecki, a real estate agent who has lived in the area for 42 years. The area is still recovering from the damage from a tropical storm about a month ago.
"Everybody's a little concerned," he said. "Everybody's a little worried. We just have to see where the lava goes. There's no control. It's Mother Nature."
A big concern is lava crossing roads and blocking Puna off from the rest of the island, or becoming "lava-locked," he said.
Business has been quiet since Tropical Storm Iselle made landfall over the region last month, said Mary Bicknell, owner of Big Island Book Buyers, a bookstore in downtown Pahoa.
"We're always watching it, but we're not usually threatened by it," she said of the lava.
===
Katie Price and her new baby return home after holidaying in Europe.
Alex Reid has tweeted a message of support for his ex-wife Katie Price.
Price gave birth to her first child with current husband Kieran Hayler eight weeks early last month.
She was rushed to hospital while holidaying in Europe, and was told her labour would be induced early as her baby was at risk of infection and had a dangerously low heart rate.
The model confirmed that she and Hayler arrived home with son Jett Riviera last week.
She tweeted on Tuesday (September 10): "It's been a week since me @kieran0322 and Jett been home haven't told people we are home as wanted to settle in! Thankyou to all tweets x"
Reid messaged her directly in reply, stating that he was happy to hear her family was safe.
Very glad to hear @kieran0322 @MissKatiePrice & baby Jet are all home safe & sound!
Alex Reid and Katie Price have not been on good terms since their split in 2011.
He recently sold his wedding ring to Now magazine to give away in a reader competition.
Katie Price recently told Digital Spy that her latest pregnancy had "been more difficult" than those before.
===
An exploration of the fundamental drivers behind long term shifts in the demand for, and supply of, land for agriculture, forestry and environmental uses over the next four decades. Topics include trends in food and bioenergy demand, crop productivity on existing and potential croplands, water and climate constraints, non-extractive uses such as carbon sequestration, and the role of global trade and public policies. Students will lead discussions of weekly readings and perform simple numerical experiments to explore the role of individual drivers of long run global land use.
===
Another day, another feud for Wendy Williams.
Aretha Franklin‘s estate was ripping into the talk show host for comments Williams made about the upcoming film “Amazing Grace,” which is about The Queen of Soul recording her iconic 1972 gospel album.
Franklin’s estate quickly clapped back, according to the Detroit Free Press.
“While Franklin had initially imposed an injunction on ‘Amazing Grace,’ her objections had nothing to do with its quality; negotiations were incomplete at the time of her death… Contrary to Williams’ derisive reference, there is no ‘Cousin Junebug’ making decisions for the Estate,” the statement said in part.
In addition, the film’s director, Sydney Pollock, didn’t use one camera — there were five.
Wendy also caught heat last week from Howard Stern after she said she is “of the people” while insisting the shock-jock went Hollywood. Stern unleashed a verbal assault on Wendy on his Sirius XM show on Friday morning. Listen below, the language is brutal.
After a series of guest hosts during a brief hiatus, Williams returned to her talk show on March 4 and the drama has been non-stop ever since.
===
Amanda Staveley has explained her infamous curry house meeting with Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley.
Would-be buyer Staveley, Ashley and mutual friend Richard Desmond, a newspaper publisher, were photographed leaving a London restaurant last month.
And news of the meeting raised hopes on Tyneside that a deal to sell the club was close.
However, Ashley this week walked away from talks with financier Staveley.
As indicated by sources close to Ashley, it wasn't a formal meeting, and Staveley has revealed that it was set up by Desmond.
Photographs of the trio leaving the Hampstead restaurant were not published in a newspaper owner by Desmond.
Instead, they first appeared in The Sun. Had Staveley – who was pictured smoking a cigarette – arranged for a photographer to be outside?
“I would never had done that,” said Staveley. “If I had, I certainly wouldn’t have been pictured smoking.
Staveley says her £250million bid for the club, which was put up for sale by Ashley in October, "remains on the table".
===
and the angels did sing.
and the savior of our world.
to where the Christ child was asleep.
until the time that we grow old.
will be filled with eternal delight.
===
An exploration of the fundamental drivers behind long term shifts in the demand for, and supply of, land for agriculture, forestry and environmental uses over the next four decades. Topics include trends in food and bioenergy demand, crop productivity on existing and potential croplands, water and climate constraints, non-extractive uses such as carbon sequestration, and the role of global trade and public policies. Students will lead discussions of weekly readings and perform simple numerical experiments to explore the role of individual drivers of long run global land use.
===
China hacked Google, according to secret US government documents leaked by whistleblower website WikiLeaks.
China hacked Google, according to secret US government documents leaked by whistleblower website WikiLeaks. The US Embassy in China believes the People's Republic of China orchestrated a "coordinated campaign of computer sabotage carried out by government operatives, private security experts and internet outlaws recruited by the Chinese government", according to the New York Times.
The US faces a massive diplomatic crisis over Wikileaks' release of 251,287 classified cables sent from American embassies. The cable from the US embassy in Beijing cites a local source claiming government involvement in the hacking of Google's servers to identify the Gmail accounts of human rights activists in China in January this year.
The attack, combined with government censorship of Google and the web in general, led to Google pulling out of China in March.
Dating from 1966 to the end of February 2010, the cables contain reports on various countries' political situations, from fears of security around Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia urging the US to strike against Iran. Russia is described as a "virtual mafia state", with close ties between Russian and Italian prime ministers Vladimir Putin and Silvio Berlusconi.
Cables related to the UK include US criticism of David Cameron and British military operations in Afghanistan, and requests for intelligence on specific MPs. They also reveal inappropriate remarks made by a member of the royal family, although for once it wasn't His Royal Highness Prince Phillip, The Duke of Edinburgh making the embarrassing gaffe: it was Prince Andrew, the Duke of York with his regal foot in his chinless mouth.
Wikileaks claims it was attacked in a mass distributed denial of service attack yesterday ahead of the release of documents. The site, founded by Julian Assange, is hosted by the Swedish Pirate Party.
Leak your thoughts in the comments. Was WikiLeaks right to blow the whistle on the arcane machinations that underpin international relations, or is it putting people in danger?
===
Harmelin Media was named media agency of record for Wawa. The agency will be responsible for various media channels including TV, radio, out-of-home, digital channels and sports sponsorships. External View Consulting Group assisted in managing the agency search process. "We are looking forward to working with Harmelin Media in continuing our growth and supporting the Wawa brand," said Lisa Wollan, head of consumer insights and brand strategy for Wawa. Wawa spent $32.2 million on measured media in 2015 and $7.9 million the first half of 2016, according to Kantar Media.
===
He was in the airline business. He was American. And he knew his golf.
You know, he said, the American golfer who makes a first foray across the Atlantic typically goes to Scotland first.
Then the golfer goes to Ireland.
This, of course, begged the question: why?
I’ll attempt to answer, but first an admission.
I am biased because I am from Ireland and much of my youth was spent of golf courses there, one in particular, where my dad and other family members enjoyed membership.
That said, I am also objective enough to know that in writing about Ireland as one of the planet’s prime golf destinations I am on very firm ground indeed, anything but a voice in the wilderness, or the rough.
And here’s another thing. I have played the game all over the United States and that includes Hawaii.
I have walked the walk at the likes of Augusta National and Pinehurst. I have cast an admiring eye over Pebble Beach.
And yet I still close my eyes and imagine a fair Irish day on a green Irish fairway.
I also imagine better shots than I’m capable of hitting, but that’s another story.
At the end of this homage to Irish golf - being penned just days before the U.S. Open in a place called Erin Hills (Wisconsin) no less - I will repeat what has been said to me by more than one American golfer, this with regard to where arguably the most spectacular golf course on planet earth can be found.
It’s an Irish course…of course.
And, yes, this is a subjective point of view. It’s really impossible to rate a course as being “best” in the world. But “spectacular” leaves a little more wiggle room.
And, as stated, the affirming with regard to this particular course opinion has been directed at yours truly more than once.
I have not played this course, but have played a fair few other Irish courses that certainly rate in global terms.
So let’s take a little trip around the island and name a few.
First up though, it’s important to note that golf, along with a number of other sports, is an all island affair in terms of governance.
There is no border in Irish golf.
This fact led to all the ballyhoo a while back regarding Rory McIlroy and whether he would represent Ireland or Great Britain in the Olympics.
He didn’t play in the games, but had he done so it would have been for Ireland.
Rory is a pivotal figure in Irish golf in more ways than one.
His foundation is a prime sponsor of the Irish Open, this year being played in Portstewart, County Derry in early July.
McIlroy’s success in golf majors, along with that of Graeme McDowell and Darren Clarke, both from Northern Ireland, has been instrumental in the decision to bring The Open to Royal Portrush, just down the road from Portstewart, in 2019.
Padraig Harrington’s name being twice inscribed on the Claret Jug is also a factor.
This return of The Open to the Antrim coast draws a link back to 1951 when the oldest of golf’s majors was played there and won by Max Faulkner, a player remembered for his preference for plus fours instead of golfing slacks.
Faulkner was a standout in more ways than just dress.
The story has it that after three rounds through the rolling Portrush dunes, Faulkner was signing autographs that already proclaimed himself as the winner of the tournament.
True, he was six shots up after 54 holes but stranger things have happened. In this case they didn’t.
I met Max Faulkner when I was a kid.
He was playing at that course where I spent so much of my youth, Woodbrook, which straddles the line between Dublin and Wicklow.
I remember those odd looking plus fours. Faulkner was also a nice guy, or at least a tolerant one as he was being buzzed by whippersnappers like myself eager for player monikers.
Royal Portrush and Portstewart rate highly then.
And in Ulster there’s another brace to add to the list of must-plays. Royal County Down for sure, and I have fond memories of a nice stroll around Rosapenna links in County Donegal, a place where you could tee off on the eighteenth at 10.30 on a midsummer’s night and, assuming no diversions into the rough, finish in a manageable gloaming.
Being an island, Ireland has an abundance of links courses but also some truly beautiful parkland venues.
The K Club in Kildare and Mount Juliet in Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny come to mind.
In the case of the latter, there is a claim that this is the best parkland course on the island. Well, it was designed by Jack Nicklaus so that’s an argument that would be difficult to refute.
Druid’s Glen in County Wicklow is definitely worth a visit. Killarney, which I have battled my way around, is for sure another as is Adare Manor in County Limerick.
The aforementioned Woodbrook, which hosted a number of Ireland’s top tournaments in the 1960s and 1970s, is beside the Irish Sea but is rated a parkland course because it is fronted by mud cliffs.
The wind has had its wicked way with some of the course trees, not least pines that end up leaning this way and that.
Sometimes, with a quick glance at certain corners of the course, you would actually be reminded a little of Pebble Beach.
It is probably fair to say that the American golfer, when thinking in terms of an Irish foray, first and foremost considers a links.
No shortage of those of course. From those northern bastions mentioned above come on down the coast stopping at Rosses Point in County Sligo, Lahinch in Clare and also in the Banner County, Doonbeg and its mountainous dunes.
Doonbeg has Greg Norman’s name on the designer credits. He is reputed to have turned up, cast an eye over the landscape only to proclaim that there was nothing he could do here that God had not already done.
Having played Doonbeg, I would confidently second that assertion.
Having played it in a fresh Atlantic wind I would throw in the devil himself for good measure.
Down the coast a bit there is mighty, and mighty famous, Ballybunion with that opening tee shot that invites you to land your ball in a cemetery.
A fitting metaphor for my game so when I stood on the tee I made sure that I aimed well left of the headstones.
Waterville in County Kerry is another course to tackle. This was the late great Payne Stewart’s home from home. He used to tend bar in the clubhouse and was proclaimed honorary captain.
There is a statue of Stewart at Waterville that is the Irish match for the bronze that can be viewed at Pinehurst in North Carolina.
The Waterville website mentions that less than one percent of the world’s golf courses rate as true links courses, and that 85 percent of them can be found in Ireland and Britain.
Waterville asserts that it is the greatest links in the Republic, while granting the title to Royal County Down in Northern Ireland.
There would be argument over that of course, but both courses are for sure prominent in said argument.
Closer to Dublin there are a fair few fine links tracks, notably Royal Dublin and Portmarnock, while down the coast a bit, in County Wicklow, there is a true gem called the European Club.
But what of that as yet unnamed course so beloved by those peripatetic American eyes?
Many years ago, the great journalist and broadcaster, Alistair Cooke, spun out a tease on television.
At the end of the broadcast he promised that he would deliver his verdict on the woman that he believed was the most beautiful in living memory.
Well, he went this way and that until the very end at which point he proclaimed his belief that the actress Ava Gardner was his one and only.
Such a proclamation was certain to inspire debate of course.
Every Hollywood star has a fan club. Every great golf course has a fan club.
And Irish golfers will spend many a long evening arguing for this course and that course – and never quite reach a conclusion.
But this assertion is based on the verdict, arguably more objective, of a slew of American golfers who have played this course, or have simply clapped eyes on it, and who have come within earshot of yours truly while announcing their verdict.
So this jury is in.
To describe it as the “best” course is not applicable because that invites subjective argument from here to eternity.
But to describe this course as being the most stunning sight in the most spectacular setting invites greater consensus.
So without further ado….Well, with just a little because the reader can have a moment to guess.
The course in question can be found on a clenched fist of land off the Cork coast.
I am speaking (of course!) of Old Head.
This promontory peach has prompted a unanimity to a degree and pitch that I have not heard applied to any other golf course in Ireland, and from some, the world.
Readers might beg to differ, but best to do that after playing Old Head which is just a few miles from Kinsale.
In a way, Old Head is itself a metaphor for the entire island when it comes to golf.
It reaches out into the sea from a much larger landmass, just as Ireland itself sits in the sea off a much larger landmass.
Both metaphor and reality share their other worldly and spectacular natures.
And that’s beyond any argument in any club house bar.
We will be reminded of this very soon with the Irish Open at Portstewart, and again two years from now when The Open returns to Royal Portrush.
Finally, back to that question at the top: Scotland, Ireland, Ireland again. Why?
Now that’s a tough one but I suspect that the “craic,” as they say, might just be a little mightier in Hibernia than Caledonia.
One to argue over a wee dram ... of Irish, of course.
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Former U. S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales talks with U. S. Congressman Chuck Fleischmann, left, before speaking at the Brainerd Kiwanis Club meeting at the Chattanooga Choo Choo on April 21, 2015, in Chattanooga.
Anyone seeking to unseat U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann next year will need deep pockets.
Tennessee's 3rd District Republican got a big jump-start on fundraising Friday during a private event at the Mountain City Club in Chattanooga.
The room was packed with monied supporters from across the 11-county district, and Fleischmann was joined by U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and 8th District U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher, R-Tenn.
When Fleischmann arrived, federal reports show his campaign had nearly $147,000 on hand. By the time he left, he had more than $500,000.
The Ooltewah lawyer raised more than $370,000 Friday afternoon alone.
For perspective, in 2013 and 2014 combined, Fleischmann raised a total of $1.6 million.
The purse was the biggest Fleischmann has ever collected at one time.
"This time, I am making sure we have the financial wherewithal early, so we can defend any primary challenge," Fleischmann said after the event. "I'd prefer to have no primary challenger, but I'll be ready."
Fleischmann has never had an easy primary run in three elections to date.
Last year, he eked out a win against then-27-year-old Republican challenger Weston Wamp, son of former Rep. Zach Wamp. Fleischmann won the race with 51 percent of the vote to Wamp's 49 percent.
And in 2012, he battled the younger Wamp and Athens, Tenn., dairy icon Scotty Mayfield in the primary. Fleischmann got 39 percent of the vote, Mayfield got 31 percent and Wamp pulled 29 percent.
His first run in 2010 was a six-candidate scrum.
McCarthy said Friday the Tennessee Republican has been "very effective" for the 3rd District by getting funding for Oak Ridge National Laboratory and helping to move things along at the Chickamauga lock from his coveted spot on the House Appropriations Committee.
"I don't know if I've ever seen someone get on that [committee] faster than our own Chuck Fleischmann," he told the crowd.
No one has officially announced a campaign to challenge Fleischmann in the 2016 primary, but politicos have nodded toward state Sen. Bo Watson. And Watson hasn't denied the rumors.
In March, Watson said he was focusing on his job in session, not a campaign. But he didn't say whether he would run.
"I have people encourage me all the time," Watson said. "I don't rule that out. ... I think every election cycle you look at what opportunities might come up."
Watson did not return a telephone message left Friday afternoon for comment.
Weston Wamp has said he would not seek to run in 2016, but he didn't rule out future bids.
Contact staff writer Louie Brogdon atlbrogdon@timesfreepress.com, @glbrogdoniv on Twitter or at 423-757-6481.
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ply tires, air shocks. $400.
Awesome Tire And wheel combo.
trucks and SUV's with six bolt hubs.
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Are stoners now a target advertising demographic for fast food companies?
Ever since Harold and Kumar went to White Castle, fast-food companies have become increasingly blatant about targeting to stoners in their advertisements.
July 31, 2012, 1:48 a.m.
Between Taco Bell's "Fourthmeal" advertisements and Jack in the Box commercials featuring slow-talking stoners, it's hardly a secret anymore that fast-food companies are shamelessly targeting potheads with their ads. But have they crossed a line?
Once considered a taboo marketing approach, the fast-food industry today appears to have brazenly embraced the late-night munchies, according to The Fix. Although advertisements never blatantly refer to pot smoking, subliminal messaging has become more obvious.
Take, for instance, this recent Jack in the Box advertisement. And Taco Bell has created a jingle to go with its latest string of advertisements, which sings of the "late-night munchies." Of course, drive-thru windows open well into the morning hours also cater to the average midnight snacker, but there's little denying who the real target is given the choice of terminology.
"If you're targeting that heavy fast-food user, you need to speak their language," said Denise Yohn, a brand consultant who's worked with restaurants for 25 years, to The Fix. "One way to do that is to talk about partying and munchies. To the mainstream audience it may just sound like late nights and drinking, but to a certain audience they're talking about getting stoned."
It's not the same thing as flagrantly endorsing the use of marijuana, of course. But the fast-food industry no longer appears to think the pothead subculture is off limits either. Perhaps they're just embracing a market force, but the strategy also runs perilously close to catering directly to a drug-induced appetite that drives people to consume their product.
Of course, this wouldn't be the first time that the fast-food industry was accused of catering to addiction. Not only has fast food been proven to be highly addictive, but the industry actually hires scientists to design its food for exactly that purpose.
Whether marketing to stoners crosses an ethical line or not, it certainly seems to be working. Taco Bell has seen its sales spike by 6 percent since launching its "late-night munchies" advertisements. The marketing has been so successful that at least one new upstart fast-food enterprise has decided to sell its line of frozen burritos directly to potheads. Drive-thrus of nearly every major fast-food chain now typically stay open past midnight, undoubtedly due to a steady profit margin.
So long as it works, it's not likely to change. In fact, without any backlash, it may not be long before advertisers compete explicitly for the stoner demographic.
"A lot of companies are skipping the innuendo," said Yohn. "They think it's more effective to be overt. It creates more buzz. I think that's why you see a lot of advertising that seems unapologetically targeted to pot smokers."
Ever since Harold and Kumar went to White Castle, fast food companies seem increasingly blatant about targeting to stoners in their advertisements.
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Trump's new immigration ad was panned as racist. Turns out it was also based on a falsehood. - Hartford Courant Trump's new immigration ad was panned as racist. Turns out it was also based on a falsehood.
Trump's new immigration ad was panned as racist. Turns out it was also based on a falsehood.
The expletive-filled advertisement President Donald Trump released this week, seemingly to raise fears about immigration in advance of the midterm elections, was widely denounced, with Democrats and even some Republicans criticizing it as racist.
But, beyond the outrage, the ad was also reportedly based on a falsehood.
The 53-second video focuses on the courtroom behavior of Luis Bracamontes, an undocumented immigrant who was convicted of killing two sheriff's deputies in California in 2014 and bragged about it during the trial.
"Democrats let him into our country," the ad's script reads. "Democrats let him stay."
Just one problem: It doesn't appear to be true.
Bracamontes, who had been deported multiple times before his crime spree, last entered the country while George W. Bush was president, sometime between May 2001 and February 2002, when there is a record for his marriage in Arizona, according to the Sacramento Bee.
He lived near Salt Lake City until 2014, when a methamphetamine-fueled road trip ended with the murder of the two Sacramento-area deputies, according to the Bee.
The ad also failed to mention that in 1998 he was arrested on drug charges in Phoenix, then released by the office of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio "for reasons unknown," the Bee reported.
Arpaio, a close Trump ally who has made waves for his hard-line immigration policies and rhetoric, was convicted in 2017 for ignoring a federal judge's order to stop detaining people on the suspicion of being undocumented immigrants. He was later pardoned by Trump.
The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office did not respond to a request for comment.
Bracamontes had been deported under both Democratic and Republican presidencies.
He was first arrested on charges related to marijuana possession in Phoenix in 1996 and sentenced to four months in jail, the Bee reported. He served his time and was deported in 1997, when Bill Clinton was president, only to be deported again in 2001 soon after being arrested on marijuana charges, according to the Bee.
Bracamontes has been sentenced to the death penalty in the murder case.
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Residents and businessmen in the Washoe Valley, Pleasant Valley area generally see the Interstate 580 freeway extension as a mixed blessing.
Once open, Nevada Department of Transportation officials say as much as 70 percent of the traffic on Highway 395 will move to the freeway, greatly reducing the traffic on the old road.
Chris Jacobsen, who lives in what he described as a luxury home in Washoe Valley, agreed it will be a blessing for the residential areas along the current Highway 395 route. But Jacobsen, a consultant who advises businesses – primarily convenience stores – on where best to locate, said it will overall hurt the businesses in Washoe City. He said that applies especially to convenience stores, the gas station and businesses like the Chocolate Factory and Nevada Lynn Emporium which rely on impulse buyers seeing them and deciding to stop.
He said Paul Marazzo, owner of Washoe Flats restaurant – formerly the Cattleman’s – may benefit because his is a destination rather than an impulse stop.
Marazzo is counting on that. He said when the trucks and other through traffic move to the new freeway, it will also make it much easier and safer for drivers seeking a nice dinner at the restaurant he and his brother, Lynn, operate. And, as the valley develops, he said he’ll get more and more local business.
At the same time, he said the freeway will make it easier for people to come to his restaurant because they’ll be able to take the freeway to Parker Ranch Road just south of the restaurant.
And in the meantime, he said the freeway construction crews are excellent customers.
She said traffic is the issue and she has been involved in efforts to get people to slow down through the valley.
Tyson Petty, manager of Old Washoe Station, the gas station and mini-mart to the north, made similar comments.
Couch and Petty both said their businesses may be hurt somewhat but neither thought the loss of traffic would put them out of business.
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It may not have been enough to bring out the skis, but Wood River Valley residents woke up with a shock Wednesday to see a snowstorm three days before the start of summer.
Elizabeth Padian, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pocatello, said observers reported snow from Timmerman Hill north through the Wood River and Sawtooth valleys.
Padian said late-June snowstorms are a rarity in the area, but historical records show that a trace of snow is possible on any given day year-round. She said that since the start of record-keeping in 1937, there has been snowfall in the Wood River Valley on several days in late June, as well as in July and August.
Jan Turzian, owner of Sun Valley Garden Center in Bellevue, said a few of her customers told her they lost tomatoes due to the unexpected cold weather. She said plants that were covered were probably all right. She said it’s the cold temperatures more than snow that damages delicate flowers and vegetables.
The Herr brothers, Ed and Nevin, who grow strawberries in Picabo for sale around the Wood River Valley, said their crop was undamaged by the late snow.
“It’s supposed to be 80 degrees from here on out, so I think we’re OK,” Ed Herr said.
The storm was widespread, and was more pronounced farther south in Utah. According to the National Weather Service office in Salt Lake City, snow fell throughout the Wasatch Mountains, including 9 inches at Alta, which is at 8,800 feet elevation.
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President Barack Obama shakes hands with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office last Thursday, after the two met to discuss the presidential transition.
Donald Trump's victory in the race for the White House leaves widespread uncertainty about what's in store for public schools under the first Republican administration in eight years. Aside from school choice, Trump, a New York-based real estate developer who has never before held public office, spent little time talking about K-12 education during his campaign. And he has no record to speak of on the issue for insights into what he may propose.
"We're all engaging in a lot of speculation because there hasn't been a lot of serious discussion about this, especially in the Trump campaign," Martin R. West, an associate professor of education at Harvard University, said in the run-up to the Nov. 8 presidential election. West has advised Republicans, including 2012 nominee Mitt Romney and Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, on education.
Trump did propose a $20 billion plan to dramatically expand school choice for low-income students. It would use federal money to help them attend private, charter, magnet, and regular public schools of their choice. It's also designed to leverage additional state investments in school choice of up to $100 billion nationwide.
In the campaign, the president-elect also embraced merit pay for teachers, without offering details beyond saying he found it unfair that "bad" teachers sometimes earned "more than the good ones." And, on the early-childhood front, he's pitched offering six weeks of maternity leave to women who do not get it through their employers, expanding the availability of dependent-care savings accounts, and offering tax incentives for employers to provide on-site day care.
But otherwise, the Trump campaign mostly dealt in sound bites with such controversial issues as the Common Core State Standards, the possibility of getting rid of the U.S. Department of Education, and gun-free school zones.
"I could really see him trying to minimize any role [of the federal government in education]," Nat Malkus, a research fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, said in contemplating the implications of a Trump presidency ahead of the vote.
While education is not a high-profile issue politically at the moment, it's not as if the Trump administration won't have anything to do on school policy.
At or near the top of the K-12 to-do list is how the new administration handles the Every Student Succeeds Act, or ESSA, the latest version of the flagship federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act that was first passed in 1965. The Education Department under President Barack Obama is relatively close to finalizing ESSA regulations governing how states hold schools accountable and how districts must show they are using federal money to supplement their state and local school budgets.
Republicans in Congress have been critical of both sets of proposals from the department, particularly the one governing the supplemental-money rule. In fact, 25 GOP lawmakers recently asked the department to rescind its proposal for ensuring federal funds are supplemental, not a replacement for state and local money, on the grounds that the proposal would give the department too much power over state and local budget decisions.
The incoming administration may be on the same page as those lawmakers, said Gerard Robinson, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former state schools chief in Virginia and Florida.
"I think [Trump's] secretary of education will handle it differently than what we've seen from [current Secretary] John King," regarding the so-called supplement-not-supplant rules, Robinson said. Robinson is serving as a member of the Trump transition team, but spoke only on his own behalf.
Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton focused more on early education and college affordability than K-12 in her losing bid for the White House.
However, when it comes to ESSA in general, Robinson said he believes that Trump views the law as a result of a "bipartisan coalition" and that the president-elect won't get too heavily involved in ESSA's rollout.
And Robinson expects states to have a great deal of flexibility in the ESSA accountability plans that they submit to the Trump administration starting next year—significantly more than they enjoyed under Obama-era waivers from the No Child Left Behind Act, the predecessor to ESSA.
"This is a great time to be a state chief," Robinson said, adding at the same time that "I don't want state chiefs to think that when they turn those [plans] in that, 'Oh, well, these will just get approved.' "
What's more, a lot of policies under the No Child Left Behind Act were part of the law but the George W. Bush or Obama administration didn't do much to enforce them. A couple of examples: the requirement that highly qualified teachers be distributed fairly between poor and less-poor schools, and that districts offer free tutoring to students in schools that weren't making progress under the law.
There could be similar examples of provisions that are on the books in ESSA, or in the Obama administration's regulations for the law, said Vic Klatt, a one-time aide to House Republicans who is now a principal at the Penn Hill Group. And since the Trump administration will be the first to enforce ESSA, it could be "easier and less disruptive" for it to simply ignore parts of the law than it would be for another administration down the line, Klatt said.
Trump could also discard another key piece of the Obama education legacy: The president-elect could significantly curb the role of the department's office for civil rights when it comes to state and local policies, according to Robinson, and thereby return the OCR's role more to how it operated under Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. That could have a big impact on everything from action on racial disparities in school discipline to transgender students' rights.
Robinson also said that he expects the OCR to ensure that students' rights are not "trampled on."
Some civil rights advocates though, are already concerned, given some of Trump's campaign-trail rhetoric on Muslims and Latinos, that the office won't flex its enforcement muscles.
"We're worried," said Liz King, the director of education policy for the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. "We're hearing what everyone else is hearing from teachers and families that kids don't feel safe."
Much depends on whom Trump picks to lead his Education Department—assuming that he decides not to seek elimination or drastic cutbacks to the agency, which he has sometimes said he would like to do.
In October, Carl Palladino, a school board member in Buffalo, N.Y., and a Trump campaign surrogate, said he believed that if elected, Trump would pick someone from outside the education policy world to lead the department.
Another critical decision will be on who reviews states' proposed accountability plans for ESSA next year.
"Who are going to be his people? If he brings in a traditional right-of-center group, you can take it from there," said Maria Ferguson, the executive director of the Center on Education Policy, who worked in the Education Department under President Bill Clinton.
President-elect Donald Trump speaks at his victory rally on Nov. 9 in New York City. The Republican real estate developer made school choice a key theme when talking about public education on the campaign trail.
Ferguson suggested a traditional conservative policy agenda of expanded charter schools and other initiatives would probably get traction under Trump.
"All these familiar themes that the right-of-center groups have talked about will become a version of his agenda," Ferguson predicted. She mentioned school choice and groups like the Foundation for Excellence in Education, which was founded by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, one of Trump's rivals for the GOP nomination. "But I don't think it's going to come from him."
Earlier this year, Trump tapped Rob Goad, a staffer for Rep. Luke Messer, R-Ind., to be his education adviser, not long before the Trump campaign released its $20 billion school choice plan. There are some basic similarities between Trump's plan and a push last year to make federal Title I aid "portable" for disadvantaged students to use at both public and private schools.
And Trump's transition team for education includes Robinson, the former Florida and Virginia state chief, and Williamson M. Evers, a research fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, who worked at the Education Department under President George W. Bush.
Much also depends on Trump's relationship with Congress and to what extent he empowers key GOP lawmakers on education policy.
Besides ESSA, Congress has been fairly active in moving education-related legislation. In recent months, for example, the House of Representatives approved reauthorizations of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act and the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act.
Some, but less, progress has also been made on renewing the Child Nutrition Act. And the Higher Education Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and the Head Start federal preschool program are up for reauthorization in the near future.
Trump has outlined a general plan on college affordability, including capping student-loan repayments at 12.5 percent of income and instituting loan forgiveness after 15 years for certain borrowers. College affordability is a more prominent issue thanks to the 2016 presidential campaign. And since Congress remains sharply divided along partisan lines, Trump and the Republicans likely won't be able to simply roll ahead with all their preferences on higher education.
"You're not doing anything legislatively without bipartisan support," said West, of Harvard. "It's not obvious to me that there is a clear Republican agenda in Congress right now with respect to K-12 education, except for trying to ensure that ESSA is implemented in a way consistent with the intent of the law of empowering states to design accountability systems as they see fit."
But uncertainty prevails, both over what the new president will take an interest in and how much he will push to get education bills and initiatives over the finish line.
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BE AWARE: Motorists in the Newcastle CBD must now observe a 40kph speed limit on Hunter Street (pictured) and Scott Street between Worth Place and Telford Street. Picture: Darren Pateman.
MOTORISTS from Lake Macquarie and the Central Coast - who aren't familiar with the changes to driving conditions in Newcastle caused by the light rail system - would do well to take extra care around the city's CBD.
Officers from Police Transport Command, Traffic and Highway Patrol Command and Newcastle Police District have been regularly patrolling around the Hunter Street transport system since it went live on February 18.
Northern Region Traffic Tactician Chief Inspector Amanda Calder said officers have observed a number of dangerous incidents putting the lives of not only drivers at risk, but also bystanders and light rail commuters.
"The light rail has been up and running for more than a month and the vast majority of people are aware of the changed road network and have adapted to the changes," Chief Inspector Calder said.
"There are some drivers who are not paying attention and are making serious mistakes with their actions endangering themselves and others along Hunter Street and Stewart Avenue.
"Officers from Traffic and Highway Patrol have observed several near-misses during this first month of operation, with the most common offences being vehicles driving on the tram tracks; running red lights at light rail crossings; and pedestrians - who are often distracted and looking at their phones - jaywalking across the tracks."
She gave the example of one motorist who got it all wrong.
"One driver was seen by police to drive onto the rail track on Hunter Street, cross to the wrong side of the road, and drive into the path of an oncoming tram before proceeding through a red light before police could stop the car," Chief Inspector Calder said.
The Newcastle Transport website advises there are new signs, traffic lights and road markings across the city centre which show how drivers, cyclists and pedestrians should behave around light rail vehicles and tracks.
Motorists are being urged to pay attention and follow the signage that spells out how to behave when sharing the roads with light rail vehicles. Picture: Marina Neil.
"A 40kph speed limit is in place for all vehicles, including light rail, on Hunter and Scott streets between Worth Place and Telford Street," the website said.
For most of Hunter and Scott streets, light rail runs in its own dedicated lane known as a tramway. Drivers are not allowed to drive on a tramway unless avoiding an obstruction.
There is also a mixed running section on Scott Street, between Newcomen and Pacific streets. In this section, light rail vehicles and other road users share a lane.
Road users are generally required to treat light rail as any other large vehicle in this section.
Police are encouraging motorists to use their common sense and take their time on the roads to adapt to the new road conditions.
"We're asking the community to not let these issues become long-term habits, be safe and alert at all times when near the light rail network," Chief Inspector Calder said.
For more information on the Newcastle Light Rail visit newcastletransport.info/light-rail.
Discuss "Police spot risky driving habits around light rail vehicles"
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eMagin Corporation (NYSE MKT: EMAN) will release fourth quarter 2016 earnings and host a conference call that will be webcast on Tuesday, March 28, 2017.
eMagin Corporation (NYSE MKT: EMAN) will release fourth quarter 2016 earnings and host a conference call that will be webcast on Tuesday, March 28, 2017. The Company's management will discuss financial results for the fourth quarter of 2016, ended December 31, 2016, and provide a corporate update.
The conference call and live webcast will begin at 9:00 a.m. ET. An archive of the webcast will be available one hour after the live call through April 27, 2017. To access the live Webcast or archive, please visit the Company's website at ir.emagin.com.
A leader in OLED microdisplay technology, OLED microdisplay manufacturing know-how and mobile display systems, eMagin manufactures high-resolution OLED microdisplays and integrates them with magnifying optics to deliver virtual images comparable to large-screen computer and television displays in portable, low power consumption, lightweight personal displays. eMagin microdisplays provide near-eye imagery in a variety of products from military, industrial, medical and consumer OEMs. More information about eMagin is available at www.emagin.com.
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An exploration of the fundamental drivers behind long term shifts in the demand for, and supply of, land for agriculture, forestry and environmental uses over the next four decades. Topics include trends in food and bioenergy demand, crop productivity on existing and potential croplands, water and climate constraints, non-extractive uses such as carbon sequestration, and the role of global trade and public policies. Students will lead discussions of weekly readings and perform simple numerical experiments to explore the role of individual drivers of long run global land use.
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A Florida felon is back in jail after uploading photos to his Instagram page showing him posing with firearms.
Police raided Depree Johnson’s Lake Worth home last week after investigators spotted the incriminating images of the 19-year-old on the photo-sharing web site. Johnson’s rap sheet includes convictions for grand theft, burglary, and felon in possession of a firearm.
As seen above, one of the Instagram photos (click to enlarge) shows Johnson holding two handguns, while a friend points another weapon at his head.
Detectives with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office recently examined Johnson’s Instagram account as they were investigating his possible involvement in a series of burglaries.
The search of Johnson’s home turned up numerous pieces of stolen jewelry and a pair of stolen firearms. As a result, Johnson was arrested and booked into the county jail on 142 criminal counts.
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Hearings will continue over September's Merrimack Valley gas explosions with a state hearing scheduled next week.
Those directly affected got a chance to air their concerns during a special congressional hearing in Lawrence Monday.
Among those who spoke was Lucianny Rondon, sister of Leonel Rondon, the 18 year-old man killed in the explosions.
"We will not have the joy of seeing the wonderful man we know he would have become," Rondon said. "I stand in front of you in his honor. I will never have my brother back. But we hope there will be justice for him, and the community."
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey led Monday's hearing, and is among several politicians calling for executives to step down because of how the explosions were handled. He also questions whether they should continue their work in Massachusetts and beyond.
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Stopping nearsightedness in kids and more.
This week, Dr. Sydney Spiesel discusses a way to stop the progression of nearsightedness in kids, a better method of hormone replacement therapy for women after menopause, and new developments in the search for a cause for autism. His column will start appearing a couple of times a month.
Condition: Nearsightedness, or myopia, is the most common eye problem. In the United States and Europe, about 25 percent of the adult population is nearsighted, and in much of Asia the condition is more common still. Significant myopia can have serious medical consequences. It has long been understood that the condition has a strong genetic component: Nearsighted parents are more likely to have nearsighted children. But recent research has shown that other factors contribute. For example, just as our mothers warned us, there is now evidence that doing close-up work, like reading, seems to promote the condition.
How it progresses: The eyeball of a nearsighted person is deeper than the eyeball of a person with normal vision and becomes deeper as nearsightedness progresses. Myopia often begins to develop between the ages of 6 and 8. As children grow, their nearsightedness worsens, continuing to do so long after they have stopped growing taller. Though we know a lot about factors associated with nearsightedness and its progression, we have no good ideas yet about the mechanism. But can we stop it?
New research: A recent study by Wei-Han Chua and colleagues at the Singapore National Eye Center elegantly built on older research and successfully used atropine eye drops to treat myopia in children. Atropine is a longer-lasting version of the pupil-dilating drops your doctor uses when you go for an eye exam. Available by prescription in the United States, the drops are mainly used to treat amblyopia (lazy eye) instead of the older treatment, patching, which children often hate.
Dr. Chua and his co-workers studied the progression of nearsightedness in 400 children between 6 and 12 years of age. Half the children were treated with atropine eye drops, and the other half were treated with placebo eye drops. Both kinds of drops were administered nightly to one eye, so the untreated eye could be compared with the treated one. The children were followed for two years. All used eyeglasses to correct their nearsightedness, and because atropine dilates the pupil, the lenses of the glasses self-darkened in bright light, to avoid discomfort for the children whose pupils were dilated.
Findings: The effects were extraordinary: After two years, on average, the children’s nearsightedness had not progressed in the atropine-treated eyes but had dramatically worsened in the placebo-treated and untreated eyes. Similarly, atropine-treated eyes did not become deeper, while placebo-treated and untreated eyes did. No serious adverse effects were observed in the course of the research.
Conclusion: This is extremely promising. Further work needs to be done to determine the ideal concentration of atropine in the eye drops, to find out how long the treatment needs to last, and if the effects are permanent. Because atropine interferes with close focusing, children will probably need to wear bifocals while they’re using the atropine drops. Much more research must be done to help us understand why nearsightedness develops and progresses. But in the meantime, we may have a way to head off this common problem.
Treatment: Hormone replacement therapy was introduced in 1941, when the FDA approved the use of estrogen for this purpose. Early on, HRT was prescribed with great enthusiasm. It relieved troublesome symptoms associated with menopause, including hot flashes, sleep problems, and, for some women, difficulty in concentration. And HRT (usually estrogen plus a progestin) was shown to improve the bone density of elderly women and decrease their risk for fractures.
Downside: Time and further research has shown that these gains come at a cost, however: increased risk for cardiovascular problems, stroke, and blood clots in the veins and lungs. Postmenopausal women on HRT also seem to be an increased risk for breast cancer and possibly dementia. This made many women feel they had to choose between improved quality of life and a risk of ill health and early death.
New study: Now research reported in the journal Circulation suggests a way around the blood clotting problem, at least. The researchers studied about 270 women who had developed blood clots in their veins, almost all of them postmenopausal. They were compared with more than 600 women who did not suffer from blood clots but similar in age, smoking status, and age at menopause. Among women in either group who used HRT, the study tracked whether the estrogen medication was taken orally or applied through the skin as a patch or a gel. The nature of the progestin component, if any, was also studied.
Findings: Estrogen HRT increased the risk for blood clots in the veins—but only if it was administered orally. This result is not as surprising as it might seem. A medication that’s given orally collects in the blood supply of the intestines and passes through the liver before it is distributed to the rest of the body. This causes changes in the proteins synthesized by the liver, some of which are known to increase the clotting of blood. When the estrogen in HRT is administered through the skin, by contrast, it bypasses the liver. The study also established that some progestins (there are many kinds) increase the risk of blood clotting and that others do not.
Conclusion: If these findings are confirmed, HRT skin patches or gels and careful choice of the progestin component could normalize the risk of blood clots in the veins, and also blood clots that migrate to the lungs, causing pulmonary embolism, and to the brain, causing stroke. Unfortunately, other studies suggest that administering HRT through the skin won’t affect the rate of heart disease or risk of breast cancer associated with it. HRT will still be a difficult choice. But this study at least lowers the risk and may well shift the balance for many women.
Search for a cause: It has long been clear that autism is primarily genetic in origin. The disorder is almost certainly the result not of a single abnormal gene, but rather the interaction of several. In the past, a few locations on human chromosomes have been suspected of playing a role for a scattering of patients. Now researchers have identified a genetic location on a specific chromosome that seems to be associated with the expression of autism in many patients.
Newresearch: Described in a paper with 137 authors representing 67 worldwide institutions, this finding is the first result of an audacious project conducted by the Autism Genome Project Consortium. The project started with a set of almost 1,500 families with at least two people who fall on the autism spectrum. Of this group, DNA samples from about 1,200 families could be analyzed for chromosomal similarities.
Findings: This analysis points to a hitherto unsuspected “hot spot” on chromosome 11, which seems to be related to an increased risk for the expression of autism. (The genetic function of the hot-spot location is still unclear.) Besides identifying the chromosome 11 hot spot, the data also tantalizingly hint that flaws in the gene coding for a material called neurexin, which plays a role in the development of certain cell-to-cell transmission sites (synapses), can cause autism in some cases. This trigger for autism is probably quite rare. But it suggests that the disorder is somehow related to abnormalities in the connections between nerve cells that make use of glutamate for information transmission, and defects in those transmissions. How (or even if) these two observations—the hot spot and the neruexin flaws—fit together is as yet unknown.
Conclusion: This study doesn’t tell us exactly which gene on chromosome 11 is important, but it does tell us just where to focus our attention. And the neurexin-related discovery hints at the mechanism of what might go wrong in neurodevelopment to lead to autism. These discoveries reinforce the value of collaborative work that puts together information about patients with a relatively rare disorder, from many locales, to create a pool large enough for serious research.
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HANOI, Vietnam – Vietnam&apos;s government has vowed to crack down on three dissident blogs, a move that appeared to backfire Thursday as record numbers of people visited the sites and the bloggers pledged to keep up their struggle for freedom of expression.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung&apos;s order for police to arrest those responsible for the websites reflects growing unease within the Communist Party over the emergence of blogs and social media accounts that publish dissenting views, independent reporting and whistleblowing. The party doesn&apos;t allow free media, and fears criticism or discussion of its failings on the Internet could lead to social instability and — ultimately — loss of its power.
"Nobody can shut our mouth or stop our freedom of expression," said a member of the team that administers one of the targeted blogs, Danlambao. "This is our mission. We will continue at any cost." The blogger chatted over the Internet with The Associated Press on the condition that his name and exact location not be published because of the risk of arrest.
Danlambao, or "Citizens&apos; Journalism," is one of the most prominent of several dissident blogs that have sprung up in the last two years.
It has attracted thousands of viewers in recent weeks because of its reporting on suspected power struggles among the ruling elite that it says may have been behind the arrest of a banking tycoon last month. It has speculated that the detention of Nguyen Duc Kien, said to be close to the prime minister&apos;s daughter, was the result of tensions between the premier and the president.
Late Wednesday, the government said Danlambao and two others sites had been "publishing distorted and fabricated articles" against the leadership. It said that Vietnamese state employees were forbidden from visiting the sites.
It is not illegal for Vietnamese to visit the targeted sites, but they are blocked by the government&apos;s firewall. Vietnam blocks many sensitive websites, though the firewall is fairly easy to get around.
"This is a wicked plot of the hostile forces," a government statement said, adding that the prime minister had ordered police to arrest those associated with the sites.
The statement led to a surge in visitors to the sites as curious Vietnamese wanted to see what they had been publishing, according to the blogs.
The Danlambao blog said it was on course to have more than 500,000 page views Thursday, more than double its normal amount, thanks to what it called the unintended public relations coup handed to it by the government.
One of the other targeted sites, Quanlambao, or the "Officials&apos; Journalism" blog, said Dung&apos;s threat was meant to lay the legal groundwork for a campaign of arrests against bloggers.
The blogger contacted by The AP said Dung mentioned their site by name to try to scare contributors from contacting it.
"They (the government) are losing control of the independent blogs," the blogger said. "Not just our one."
The blogger said Danlambao&apos;s sources of information were other bloggers, journalists who work for state-run media, ordinary citizens and Communist Party members seeking to damage other factions within the party. Some of the material comes from reading between the lines of reports in the state-run media, the blogger said.
"They provide us the bullets and we shoot — because they can&apos;t," the blogger said.
International watchdog Reporters Without Borders says there are currently at least five journalists and 19 bloggers being held on various charges in Vietnam, part of a gathering government effort to stifle criticism over the last two years even as the country presses ahead with opening its economy to foreign investment. The government labels democracy and free speech activists as terrorists.
Journalists working for foreign news organization are allowed to live in the country but must ask permission to report outside the capital. That is routinely denied if the subject of the story is seen as sensitive or damaging to Vietnam.
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I met several customers in the past few weeks who are evaluating Application Performance Management (APM) solution. They are facing a lot of challenges with their existing investments in old generation of APM solution. In this blog, I will outline some of the shortcomings with APM 1.0 tools that make them unfit for today’s applications.
Customers have been managing application performance since early days of mainframe evolution. However, Application Performance Management as a discipline has gained popularity in the past decade.
Let me first introduce what I mean by APM 1.0. The enterprise applications and technologies such as Java have evolved in past two decades. The APM 1.0 tools were invented more than a decade back and they provided great benefits to resolve application issues that were prevalent with the early versions of Java and .NET technologies. However Java/.NET application servers have become mature and do not have those challenges any more. Also enterprise application architecture and technologies have changed drastically and the APM 1.0 tools have not kept up. The following figure shows the evolution of enterprise Java in the past 15 years and when APM 1.0 and APM 2.0 tools have started emerging.
Following are few challenges with the APM 1.0 tools that you will run into when trying to manage your enterprise applications.
The application owner and the application support team primarily cares about the user experience and service level delivered by their applications. APM 1.0 tools were primarily built to monitor applications from an application infrastructure perspective.
These tools lack the capabilities to monitor applications from real user perspective and help you isolate application issues whether it is caused by the network, load balancers, ADNs such as Akamai, or the application, database, etc. Some of these solutions were quick to add some basic end-user monitoring capabilities such as synthetic monitoring. However an application support personnel has to switch between multiple consoles and depend on manual correlation between end-user monitoring and application deep dive monitoring tools.
These tools do not allow you to track a real user request to the line of the code. That means you are blind-sighted when users are impacted and struggle to find what is causing the application failure.
APM 1.0 deep-dive monitoring tools were primarily built to diagnose issues during the application development lifecycle. These tools morphed into production deep-dive monitoring tools when the need arose for APM in production environments. So, These tools were not optimized for production monitoring and hence require a lot of effort to tune for production.
First off, the complexities of agent installation and configuration hinder deployment in production environment. Second, these tools usually require configuration changes every time new application code is rolled out.
Most damagingly, they have high overhead on application performance and do not scale beyond 100-150 application servers. This means that most customers use these in a test environment or enable deep-dive monitoring retroactively after an application failure - assuming the problem will recur.
Finally, these tools do not provide operation friendly UIs and because they were originally built for developers.
As I alluded earlier, the old generation APM tools are very complex to configure because these require application knowledge, manual instrumentation and complex agent deployment. Hence expensive consultants are required to deploy and configure and maintain these tools. These tools also have multiple consoles - adding to total cost of ownership. Some customers told me that they spend a lot of time managing these APM tools rather than being able to manage their applications.
These tools were built more than a decade back, and have not evolved much although the application architecture, technologies and methodologies have gone though drastic changes.
APM 1.0 tools certainly cannot satisfy these needs. In the next blog, I will discuss how an APM 2.0 solution like BMC Application Management addresses the challenges with APM 1.0 products and help you manage applications better thus improving customer satisfaction and resulting in better bottomline.
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The democratization of data is a real phenomenon, but building a sustainable data democracy means truly giving power to the people. The alternative is just a shift of power from traditional data analysts within IT departments to a new generation of data scientists and app developers. And this seems a lot more like a dictatorship than a democracy — a benevolent dictatorship, but a dictatorship nonetheless.
These individuals and companies aren’t entirely bad, of course, and they’re actually necessary. Apps that help predict what we want to read, where we’ll want to go next or what songs we’ll like are certainly cool and even beneficial in their ability to automate and optimize certain aspects of our lives and jobs. In the corporate world, there will always be data experts who are smarter and trained in advanced techniques and who should be called upon to answer the toughest questions or tackle the thorniest problems.
Last week, for example, Salesforce.com introduced a new feature of its Chatter intra-company social network that categorizes a variety of data sources so employees can easily find the people, documents and other information relevant to topics they’re interested in. As with similarly devised services — LinkedIn’s People You May Know, the gravitational search movement, or any type of service using an interest graph — the new feature’s beauty and utility lie in its abstraction of the underlying semantic algorithms and data processing.
The problem, however, comes when we’re forced to rely on these people, features and applications to decide how data can affect our lives or jobs, or what questions we can answer using the troves of data now available to us. In a true data democracy, citizens must be empowered to make use of their own data as they see fit and they must only have to rely apps and experts by choice or when the task really requires an expert hand. At any rate, citizens must be informed enough to have a meaningful voice in bigger decisions about data.
The good news is that there’s a whole new breed of startups trying to empower the data citizenry, whatever their role. Companies such as 0xdata, Precog and BigML are trying to make data science more accessible to everyday business users. There are next-generation business intelligence startups such as SiSense, Platfora and ClearStory rethinking how business analytics are done in an area of HTML5 and big data. And then there are companies such as Statwing, Infogram and Datahero (which will be in beta mode soon, by the way) trying to bring data analysis to the unwashed non-data-savvy masses.
Combined with a growing number of publicly available data sets and data marketplaces, and more ways of collecting every possible kind of data — personal fitness, web analytics, energy consumption, you name it — these self-service tools can provide an invaluable service. In January, I highlighted how a number of them can work by using my own dietary and activity data, as well as publicly available gun-ownership data and even web-page text. But as I explained then, they’re still not always easy for laypeople to use, much less perfect.
Statwing spells out statistics for laypeople.
Can Tableau be data’s George Washington?
This is why I’m so excited about Tableau’s forthcoming IPO. There are few companies that helped spur the democratization of data over the past few years more than Tableau. It has become the face of the next-generation business intelligence software thanks to its ease of use and focus on appealing visualization, and its free public software has found avid users even among relative data novices like myself. Tableau’s success and vision no doubt inspired a number of the companies I’ve already referenced.
Assuming it begins its publicly traded life flush with capital, Tableau will not just be financially sound — it will also be in a position to help the burgeoning data democracy evolve into something that can last. More money means being able to develop more features that Tableau can use to bolster sales (and further empower business users with data analysis), which should mean the company can afford to also continually improve its free service and perhaps put premium versions in the hands of more types of more non-corporate professionals for free.
Tableau is already easy (I made this) — but not easy enough.
The bottom-up approach has already proven very effective in the worlds of cloud computing, software as a service and open-source software, and I have to assume it’s a win-win situation in analytics, too. Today’s free users will be tomorrow’s paying users once they get skilled enough to want to move onto bigger data sets and better features. But the base products have to be easy enough and useful enough to get started with, or companies will only have a lot of registrations and downloads but very few avid users.
And if Tableau steps ups its game around data democratization, I have to assume it will up the ante for the company’s fellow large analytics vendors and even startups. A race to empower the lower classes on the data ladder would certainly be in stark contrast to the historical strategy of building ever-bigger, ever-more-advanced products targeting only the already-powerful data elite. That’s the kind of revolution I think we all can get behind.
Feature image courtesy of Shutterstock user Tiago Jorge da Silva Estima.
Great article Derrick – appreciating your work on the topic here on GigaOm.
We’re seeing wider availability of reasonably priced BI and visualization software tools to help us understand that harnessing all this data is possible – and I think even consumers are beginning to understand the value of all the data, and the ability to make meaning from it. One part of the puzzle that’s missing from what I can see is the education – knowledge transfer of how individuals can use the tools, what good data science methods are, and how data citizens can actively contribute to the larger data analysis community. I see movements like the Open Data/Open Gov folks, and events like the NYC Big Apps hackathon as part of the solution – but as individuals, where do we go to take part? What is the role of an informed, curious citizen in this? More venues exist for learning some of the ‘how’ to make sense of big data as an individual taking a course online, but I’m not seeing a vision from anyone talking about how to connect all of the dots. To make sense of data, we need the tools, the practitioners, the analysis of the problems, but we also need a vision of how all of these will work. If anyone has ideas of who’s got that vision, I’d love to hear it.
I feel one of the biggest impediments to the democratization of data is access. Most people know what they would like to answer, and how the data needs to be shaped to achieve that, but getting the data to do the actual analysis with can be one of the most difficult aspects.
This is a bit of a plug, but we’re working on enabling data access that is easily attainable by everyone. Our platform http://www.quandl.com is a “search engine for data” that is able to fetch time series data from a disparate sets of sources, and provide it in a simple searchable form that allows users to extract, validate, format, merge, graph, and share it however they want.
By providing the underlying data for analysis tools like Tableau, Statwing, and many others, we feel we can help to create the tool stack that empowers people to create a sustainable DIY data culture.
In every company I’ve worked at, I’ve seen this major divide between IT analysts and Business users. Part of it was cultural, but a major reason was as you point out: “a historical strategy of building ever-bigger, ever-more-advanced products targeting only the already-powerful data elite”. The business user typically was left to use Excel to prepare and analyze data.
It took 15+ years, but thanks to new players like Tableau, Spotfire and Qlikview which were sold primarily to the business user and focused on ease of use, the data democratization process has resulted in a power shift to the business user. Some IT departments have now come around and are trying to accommodate these “shadow IT” projects by providing IT support and giving Tableau users limited access to enterprise data stores.
As for upping the ante for the traditional players, it has happened already. Over the last two years, the larger vendors have responded with products like Visual Insight (MicroStrategy), Visual Intelligence (SAP), PowerPivot (MicroSoft), JMP (SAS) etc. taking aim at this segment of the market. The Big Data market is still new, but the trend to build user-friendly (or at the very least, SQL-aware) tools on top of Hadoop is also hitting its stride.
One good thing coming out of this data democratization is the realization that it has to be supported by a Data Governance effort. Otherwise we’ll see the unfortunate return of a major problem with data democracy: data chaos. Previously it would have meant comparing and reconciling two Excel spreadsheets, now we may end up reconciling the findings from two Tableau workbooks.
Thanks for the comment, and for making a really good point about data governance. Obviously, that’s not too big a concern for personal data use, but competing findings from lots of disparate data sets would be problematic.
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Pop star Rihanna has made a plea for an end to gun violence following the death of a man she named as her cousin.
Rihanna posted an image of the two of them on Instagram, alongside the hashtag "#endgunviolence", saying: "RIP cousin ... can't believe it was just last night that I held you in my arms!
"Never thought that would be the last time I felt the warmth in your body!!! Love you always man!"
The image has been viewed more than two million times.
Rihanna did not name the man, but tagged the image to an account under the username @merka_95.
The man is believed to be 21-year-old Tavon Kaiseen Alleyne, who was fatally shot in the singer's native Barbados on Boxing Day.
Alleyne was shot multiple times and died later in hospital, according to local media.
Are celebrities breaching consumer rights on Instagram?
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For a career that once seemed so good on paper, the crisis in teacher recruitment is now hardly ever out of the news.
There are not enough people signing up to become teachers and too many are dropping out - some experienced due to the stress and increase in workload but often the newly qualified leave the profession, unprepared for the life in the classroom.
School lead Andrew Truby, a national leader of education, is determined to change the narrative about teaching as a profession.
He feels school leaders have it in their gift to change this situation on the ground by making brave decisions and by investing in the professional culture so that schools become irresistible places to work.
At St Thomas of Canterbury School, in Meadowhead, where Mr Truby is executive headteacher, there is a 100 per cent school-based teacher training school which is going from strength-to-strength.
The outstanding Ofsted-rated school became a teaching school in 2015, and works with partner schools in the Learning Unlimited Teaching School Alliance.
The alliance, based in a modern training facility at the school, takes on School Direct trainees on a year-long programme.
Each student is placed in one of 14 partner schools across Sheffield, Doncaster and Chesterfield for the entire programme, where they will work for a year alongside outstanding and primary class teachers.
Teaching school manager, Anita Bray, said: "The beauty of this course is that trainee teachers are based in a school for the whole programme.
"They encounter children and liaise with parents. They do things like parents evening - all the nitty gritty.
"The trainee teachers have been there and have done it, they have had that experience which is much different from doing it in classrooms."
During the course, students spend time in another of the partner schools so they get to experience life in two schools.
They are given a mentor who, at first, they observe, then plan lessons alongside before the mentor oversees the trainee teacher planning and delivering the lessons.
The trainee teachers meet once a week at the School Direct hub session for training, with specialist leaders of education or subject specialists coming in to take sessions.
Teaching school director, Sarah Rockliff, described the process as 'learning by doing'.
She said: "Trainee teachers are in classrooms and they are coming to hub sessions and picking up ideas about teaching and learning and then the next day they get the chance to put that into practice.
"Teaching is a craft and the only way to become a master of your craft is to keep practising it."
She added: "After only a few weeks the trainees start to refer to their partner school as 'my school' and they feel a real connection to the school they are working in and are invested in the children. That adds to the motivation.
"It's a hard course and requires a lot of hard work."
The alliance was established in 2015 and the first cohort of students all gained jobs after completing the course.
Trainees come from a variety of backgrounds, some have been teaching assistants or involved in education, while others are looking for a career change.
Trainee teacher Nick Walker, aged 31, taught English abroad before returning to England to further his career.
He said: "I have been teaching for five years already and I thought it would be beneficial to me to be in a hands-on situation and seeing what it was like day-today.
"I was at university 10 years ago. I wanted to carry on learning and this feels like a job whereas if I'd gone back to university it would have felt like a step backwards."
Former secondary school teaching assistant Kirsty Norris, 25, said: "You see the reality of life in a school. You experience parents' evening and when sometimes your lessons plans just don't work.
"It's hard work but you know that next year it will all be worth it."
Mr Truby, who is strategic lead for the alliance, said recruiting teachers ready for the classroom had been a challenge in the past.
"Recruitment of high quality teachers is an ongoing challenge for schools and in the past the newly qualified teachers who we did appoint were not ready for the classroom," he said.
"Through our 100 per cent school-based teacher training route, our School Direct trainee teachers experience the full school year in a primary school.
"When they start in their NQT year, they are confident in subject knowledge, planning, marking, assessment as well as knowing how the school works throughout the year."
He felt the perception around teaching needed to change because it is 'the best job in the world'.
He added: "Although teaching as a career gets a really bad press and there is a lot of talk about workload, we believe that the schools who invest in their culture will have an easier job recruiting and retaining the best teachers.
"We spend time making our schools a positive place to work because happier teachers mean happier children.
"It is time to change the narrative about this profession because we believe that teaching is the best job in the world."
The alliance is still recruiting trainees for September when it will start two new programmes. In addition to general primary, there will be a primary with maths and an early years route.
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On April 4, 1975, Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft. The small firm used to develop and sell BASIC interpreters. Little did they know that in the next 40 years, their company will become the biggest software firm in the world, and also bag the title for one of the most valuable companies.
Today, there is a little bit of Microsoft in everybody’s life. Whether it is the desktop computer where Microsoft’s Windows has about 90 percent market share or the company’s Office which is unarguably the best productivity suite available. Maybe you are into gaming and own an Xbox One, or your company relies on Azure cloud services.
In the last 40 years, Microsoft -- which once used to sell program language interpreters -- has expanded into several categories, and now makes full-fledged operating systems for not just desktop computers, but smartphones, gaming consoles, servers, as well as Internet of Things devices. Surface tablets and Xbox consoles show the company’s side interest in developing its own hardware modules.
"Early on, Paul Allen and I set the goal of a computer on every desk and in every home. It was a bold idea and a lot of people thought we were out of our minds to imagine it was possible. It is amazing to think about how far computing has come since then, and we can all be proud of the role Microsoft played in that revolution", Gates wrote in an email sent to all Microsoft employees yesterday.
"In the coming years, Microsoft has the opportunity to reach even more people and organizations around the world. Technology is still out of reach for many people, because it is complex or expensive, or they simply do not have access. So I hope you will think about what you can do to make the power of technology accessible to everyone, to connect people to each other, and make personal computing available everywhere even as the very notion of what a PC delivers makes its way into all devices", Gates noted.
"Under Satya's leadership, Microsoft is better positioned than ever to lead these advances. We have the resources to drive and solve tough problems. We are engaged in every facet of modern computing and have the deepest commitment to research in the industry. In my role as technical advisor to Satya, I get to join product reviews and am impressed by the vision and talent I see. The result is evident in products like Cortana, Skype Translator, and HoloLens -- and those are just a few of the many innovations that are on the way".
And this attitude was the reason Windows Phone 7 -- arguably Microsoft's first real take on a mobile operating system-- wasn’t released until 2010. By this time, iPhone had showed its dominance in the world, and Google was upping the ante with Android. Windows Phone is still struggling to gain any substantial market share. The mobile platform still has a wide "app-gap" problem, though the company seems to have found a couple of ways to fix it.
But one of the most exciting things that happened in the company was its decision to open up. Under Nadella, Microsoft finally accepted that it doesn’t have a significant user base in smartphones. The company realized that if it didn't open up to rival platforms, it would miss out on a lot of users. And that’s one of the first things Nadella did after taking the charge of the company. Microsoft launched Office on iOS. Until then Office was only available on Windows, Windows RT, and Windows Phone, and a half-baked mobile version on Android.
The move received an overwhelming response from users, resulting in Office apps -- Word, Excel and PowerPoint -- top the app chart in within 24 hours of their release on the platform. Late last year, the company made premium access to the Office suite free on iOS and Android. Office for iOS was in the works at Microsoft for a long time, but Ballmer used to prioritize its products on Windows devices first. Nadella evidently changed that.
"We have accomplished a lot together during our first 40 years and empowered countless businesses and people to realize their full potential. But what matters most now is what we do next", Gates writes in his email. Microsoft does have a lot of things to look forward to in the coming months and years. Later this year, Microsoft will release Windows 10 for desktop computers, as well as smartphones, IoT devices and Xbox One. In the coming months, Microsoft will also release the next iteration of its productivity suite, Office 2016. For the first time, the company is simultaneously releasing Office on OS X and Windows.
Additionally, Microsoft has showcased a number of products that could change the way we compute and interact with technology. Its augmented reality headset HoloLens is just one example. It will be interesting to see what the company does next and how things work out for it in the coming years.
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What made you a music director? As a Bengali with an MBBS degree, did you never feel the pressure to pursue a medical career?
There is always pressure on you while taking risks. Opposition from family and society is natural. I guess that���s how the society reacts. But some of us are just not made to follow the societal norms. My immense love for music coupled with my adamant nature didn���t let me settle for anything apart from music. For me, music is like medicine.
Despite hailing from Kolkata, you never thought of composing for Bengali films.
Of course I do. I���d love to work with Srijit Mukherji and Kaushik Ganguly.
How much are you clued in to Bengali film music?
I left Kolkata around eight years back and Bengali film music has come a long way since then. I love Anupamda���s (Roy) songwriting and compositions. He is brilliant. The song Ek baar bol tor keu nei is one of my favourites.
Heard you used to fight with your mother as a kid because you were forced to learn Rabindrasangeet?
Oh yes! Protidin ma er sanghe jhogra hotoh gaan sekha niye! But now Rabindrasangeet is my fave. There are times when I just sit quietly and listen to the songs. During my college days, I used to love rock. Fossils was at its peak then. I grew up listening to Kabir Suman, Anjan Dutt and so on.
Do you catch up with your old friends whenever you come down to Kolkata?
I do meet my school friends when I come here. Right now, Kolkata seems to be brimming with joy as Durga Puja is just weeks away. But sadly, I���m going to miss it this time as I would be out of the country for work. What I will miss the most are pandal-hopping and eating out in the wee hours.
Are you in touch with other Bengali music directors based in Mumbai?
Of course. I have known Pritamda very well since I was nominated for my debut in Jism2 and for my second film, Yaariyan. I was lucky to score the soundtrack along with him, Mithoon and YoYo Honey Singh. We won the best music award for it too. Pritamda is very warm and often invites us over to his house. Jeetda (Gannguli) is like family to me. His wife is my mom���s student and they are the sweetest people on earth. We often hang out in a group for adda where we don���t talk work. I don���t know Shantanu Moitra personally, but whenever we meet he is extremely encouraging and supportive.
How is the competition in Mumbai music industry?
Quite tough, but fair at the same time. What matters there is your song���s merit and nothing else.
Most of your songs, which are also penned by you, are hits. Does that create a pressure on you when you compose your next song?
There are certain expectations when you work with big stars and banners. But I take it more as a compliment than a burden.
Well the list is endless -- my childhood, daily experiences, the people around, my lovers, travelling and imagination.
While promoting Rustom in Kolkata, Akshay Kumar crooned Tere sang yaara, which is composed by you. How does it feel?
Feels great. He told me that after a long time he has a favourite song. Akshay sir has always been very kind to me. This is the third song I made for him after Meherbaani from The Shaukeens and the title track for a TV show hosted by him called Dare 2 Dance.
Who are your favourite male and female singers?
Among male artistes, it���s Chris Cornell, Eddie Vedder, Bruce Springsteen, Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Hemant Mukherjee and Mohammed Rafi to name a few. Among female singers, Lauryn Hill, Adele, Alanis Morissette, Abida Parveen and Shreya Ghoshal are my favourites.
Which music director do you like the most?
My all-time favourite music director is Hemanta Mukherjee. I am also very fond of Vishal Bhardwaj.
One singer you wish to lend voice to your music?
My dream is to have Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan or Jagjit Singh lend their voice to music composed by me some day.
Which is your favourite composition till date?
Dariya, from an upcoming film starring Katrina Kaif and Sidharth Malhotra. The song conveys the simplest and purest emotion and that���s how music should be.
Akshay Kumar, Sidharth Malhotra, Irrfan, Randeep Hooda all have lip-synced on your tracks. Any actor you would want to playback for?
I would like to playback for Ranbir Kapoor. He is one of my favourite actors.
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Popular film producer, writer and director, Amaka Igwe is dead. She reportedly died of an asthma attack last night. Reputed for her professional and brilliant concepts, Amaka produced breathtaking sitcoms like Checkmate and Fuji House of Commotion.
She is one of the foremost movie directors in Nigeria today and one of the few contemporary film makers who have had their films on celluloid.
Amaka’s celluloid film is A Barber’s Wisdom – a film which was part of M-Net’s new direction on film project with Nigerian producers.
Her films have drawn international recognition to the home video industry. She is producer of the award winning movie Forever and founder of Amaka Igwe Studios and Top FM Radio.
Amaka hails from Obinagu, Enugu, Nigeria is survived by her husband and children.
may her soul rest in peace. MA BEGI FUN E PRODUNCTIONS.
damn. great talent gone justlyk dat.
OMG!May her soul rest in peace.
sad. may her soul rest in perfect peace..
May her gentle soul rest in perfect peace.
a rare gem is gone! may her soul rest in the bossom of our Lord Jesus Christ…AMEN!!!
May her gentle soul rest in peace.Rare breed that gave so much particularly in the film industry.good night.
may her gentle soul find rest at the bosom of lord. for the family and friends, the courage to bear this irreparable and monumental loss. R.I.P., AMAKA.
A big loss at this time. May her soul rest in perfect peace.
I feel this profound loss deeply because she had been one of my role models since I was a child.
I shall miss you always.
Oh dear, may your soul rest in peace.
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Film producer Guneet Monga, who is all set to co-produce Suriya's next titled "Soorarai Pottru", says the southern star is one of the best actors in the country.
On venturing into Tamil films, Monga said: "We are so thrilled to start our journey in Tamil cinema with none other than Suriya for our film 'Soorarai Pottru'."
She praised Suriya and called him "a national icon and one of the best actors in our country".
"This is truly a dream team here, with Suriya and Rajsekar Karpoorasundarapandian's 2D Entertainment and Aalif Surti and Shriram Krishnan on my maiden venture in Tamil cinema," she added.
"Soorarai Pottru" is directed by Sudha Kongara. It also stars Aparna Balamurali.
Suriya said: "'Soorarai Pottru' will bring together highly skilled people on one platform to entertain the audiences in a different level. We welcome Sikhya Entertainment whole-heartedly."
"It's a very special film for all of us and we are kicked about it," co-producer Rajsekar Karpoorasundarapandian added.
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I previously wrote an article stating that the Texas Primary Elections will likely be split with one in March and the other in May. This is what the Texas Republican Party and the AG argued for.
Not everyone likes that idea though, and there are many who want only one Primary election date, including both Democrats and a good number of Republican State Senators and Texas Congressmen.
We will find out soon from the San Antonio Federal Court whether we will have two Texas Primaries (one in March and One in May) of whether ALL the Primary Elections in Texas will be pushed back to a later day, likely in May.
I certainly understand some of the reasons for not wanting to have a split Primary, including the extra costs and confusion. I also completely respect the opinions of the State Senators and Congressmen who are for just one later primary date. I do have concerns that this later primary election will devastate the Texas Vote in the Presidential Primary Election.
A HUGE drawback of pushing back all the primary Elections in Texas would be that it would hurt the ability of Texas to choose the next Republican Presidential Candidate in what would be the biggest election against the Democrats in the History of America.
Right now, Texas is in position to have a major say in the Republican Presidential Primary election. A later primary Election would give Texas nearly no chance of having a major impact on who the Republican Presidential Candidate will be.
The RNC made a rule that if certain states had their primary Elections before March 2012 and February 2012, then those state would lose HALF of their Presidential Primary Delegates. Well, most of the states that have primary elections before Texas have not complied with this rule and therefore those States will lose half of their Republican Presidential Primary Election Delegate Votes. A Candidate needs 1214 Delegates in order to have a majority of the Republican Presidential Primary Delegates and win the Republican Nomination.
As it stands, at the end of February 2012, and going into the March Texas Primary Election, there will only have been 87 Republican Presidential Delegates Selected (after the penalties).
Texas Has 155 Presidential Primary Delegates!
With 155 Delegates, A Texas Presidential Primary Election in March could COMPLETELY alter the Republican Presidential Race with Texas getting to pick the leader.
On the other hand, a Presidential Primary Election in May would give Texas very little say in the Republican Presidential Race because many more delegates will have been selected and the media will likely have already decided who the leader is by that point in time.
We will find out soon from the San Antonio Federal Judges whether we will have two Texas Primaries (one in March and one in May) orwhether ALL the Primary Elections in Texas will be pushed back to a later day, likely May.
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MANILA, Philippines — The state-run Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) has extended by one more month or until Jan. 31 next year its revised offer to buy out existing Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp. (PDS) shareholders and gain control of the bond exchange.
In a text message Friday, Landbank president Alex V. Buenaventura said the offer period was moved from the earlier deadline of end-December 2018 as there was “no response so far” from PDS shareholders.
Last October, Landbank issued a new offer to buy shares at P215 per share, lower than P360 a share previously.
The downgraded offer took into account the P600 million in dividends that PDS issued to shareholders in June, even as the share price remained a multiplier of 1.5 times adjusted net asset value or the same as the previous offer.
The dividend payouts reduced PDS’s asset value, Buenaventura had noted.
Buenaventura earlier expressed optimism that a majority or at least 66.67 percent of shareholders would give their acceptance letters to Landbank before yearend to seal the deal and sign share purchase agreements with them.
During the previous offer, 43 percent of shareholders already submitted acceptance letters, such that they expect the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), banks and investment houses to accept the new offer as well, Buenaventura had said.
Buenaventura’s plan to acquire a majority stake in PDS runs counter to the planned merger of the latter with the PSE.
But Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, who chairs Landbank, had lamented that the PSE was not being compliant with the conditions set for its merger with PDS.
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Urban, born Jacques Pantaléon in Troyes c. 1200, was elected to the papacy in 1261. He studied canon law at Paris and served as bishop of Verdun and patriarch of Jerusalem. He hoped to keep Sicily from the heirs of Frederick II, whom the council of Lyon excommunicated in 1245, because Urban wanted to restore papal influence in Italy. In 1263, he negotiated with Louis IX of France to put Louis' brother Charles of Anjou on the throne of Sicily. Urban died the following year before the treaty was signed.
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SOUND FORGE Audio Cleaning Lab can be used to record any sound you can hear on your computer - from internet radio to LPs and tapes which have been connected to the sound card. When recording older material, particularly when it has been stored on vinyl or cassette, it is likely that the sound quality has deteriorated over time. Using this program you can remove any unwanted extraneous noise such as clicks, pops and hisses and generally improve the overall audio experience working with an easy to use interface.
Of course, you don't need to record audio either. You can simply import an existing track of segment of music for processing, before exporting the final track.
Audio Cleaning Lab will remove unwanted sections from a recording, increase the volume of quiet tracks and split longer recording up into multiple sections - in fact, Audio Cleaning Lab can take care of much of this for you automatically. A great level of control is available through the use of a graphic equaliser that can be used to balance out tone, while additional options are available to improve the quality of video sound, reduce the volume of background music on vocal tracks and much more besides.
Don't worry, most of the options are presets which you can select to improve or clean your audio. There are options to reduce tape noise from old cassettes, reduce crackling from your LPs, remove wind noise from recorded voice, and even create your own presets to use later. You can increase the loudness of the track, increase the stereo width, add various special effects and much more.
If you've been looking for a way to digitise your music collection, Audio Cleaning Labs Deluxe may just be the tool you have been looking for. In a few simple steps you can record music to your computer, enhance its sound and then export the results as high-quality MP3s/OGG/FLAC/AAC and other formats that can be played back on a variety of devices.
Professional quality audio clean-up tool which will produce superb results from an instantly accessible program.
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YOKOHAMA, Japan – Nissan Motor Co. announced it has licensed its Around View Monitor and Moving Object Detection technology, jointly developed with Clarion Co for use by Hitachi Construction Machinery Co.
These two systems are the building blocks of autonomous driving technology that will operate commercially viable Nissan Autonomous Drive vehicles by 2020.
The Around View Monitor is a parking support system that offers the driver a bird's eye view of the vehicle's surroundings in real time using four exterior cameras.
MOD is a driving assistance technology that analyzes the images from the AVM cameras to detect moving objects around the vehicle and warn the driver with visual and audio alerts.
Since the market launch of AVM in 2007 and MOD in 2010, both firsts for any automaker, Nissan has steadily expanded its safety technology offerings, which have become a cornerstone of autonomous drive technology development.
The licensing agreement enables Hitachi Construction Machinery to provide AVM and MOD technology to its massive haul trucks and hydraulic excavators working at large open-pit mines.
When drivers start operating the vehicle, drop cargo, back up to load cargo, or when a hydraulic shovel is used in close proximity to the vehicle, the AVM-MOD technology detects any movement or workers in the area around it in real time, enabling the driver to work with greater situational awareness which enhances safety.
Nissan will contribute to the growth of technology through the application of its unique technologies and know-how for its own use as well as in a variety of fields.
Profit generated through the effective use of these intangible assets will be invested in new technology development, further contributing to Nissan's technological competence.
Autonomous Drive is being developed to help lower the element of human error during driving and contribute to a reduction in the number of accidents and injuries related to automobiles.
The licensing of this technology is an example of Nissan's intention to offer the AVM and MOD technology to other industries beyond the automotive sector.
Through the wider application of its safety technologies Nissan aims to do its part in contributing to the development of society.
March 6, 2019, 4:14 p.m.
Feb. 28, 2019, 8:34 a.m.
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Politico, which broke the PR story, reports, “The group circulated a memo to reporters and producers late Monday that discouraged them from airing the undercover videos, arguing that they were obtained under false identification and violated patient privacy. ‘Those patients’ privacy should not be further violated by having this footage shared by the media,‘ the memo reads.” Patients’ privacy? What about the victims whose body parts are sold? Planned Parenthood technicians may find that kind of depravity chuckle worthy, but congressional Republicans don’t, which is why Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will hold a vote before August recess to end the more than $500 million Planned Parenthood extracts annually from taxpayers. Amazingly, Minority Leader Harry Reid responded, “Good luck with that. We’re dealing with the health of American women, and they’re dealing with some right-wing crazy.” With even more videos set to be released, it’s only a matter of time before the story goes mainstream. Let’s see who the public will think is crazy — those who want to protect the sanctity of life, or those who try to justify the trafficking of human organs.
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Reince Priebus, the Republican National Committee chairman, entered a lobby elevator at Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York on Saturday.
President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday said he would deport 2 million to 3 million undocumented immigrants when he takes office, but he also appeared to soften some of his campaign pledges and took a major step toward the GOP establishment by naming Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus as his future chief of staff.
In Trump’s first television interview since Election Day, the billionaire businessman told “60 Minutes” that he will deport or incarcerate “the people that are criminal and have criminal records, gang members, drug dealers,’’ but at the same time he appeared to leave open the possibility that other undocumented immigrants would be allowed to stay in the United States.
“After the border is secure and after everything gets normalized, we’re going to make a determination on the people that they’re talking about who are terrific people, they’re terrific people but we are going to make a determination at that,” Trump said in an interview that aired Sunday night.
By choosing Priebus as his chief of staff, Trump went with a mainstream, traditional choice, preferred by Washington insiders.
A Wisconsin native, Priebus, 44, is known to have close ties to House Speaker Paul Ryan, who would be a key ally in getting Trump’s agenda through Congress. Priebus remained largely loyal to Trump during his unorthodox campaign, although he sometimes struggled to defend the nominee’s many statements about treatment of women and minorities.
A Globe analysis of the state’s election results showed a reddening of the state’s western counties.
Priebus, supporters suggest, is a Republican Party loyalist who will bring D.C. experience and political acumen to a White House lacking both. He was chosen over a much more controversial, and less-well known, candidate: Stephen Bannon, executive chairman of the conservative Breitbart News and the chief strategist of the Trump campaign. Bannon has a history of using his prominence to support anti-Semitic, xenophobic, and racist messages, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, a watchdog group.
In the Trump administration, Bannon will serve as a chief strategist and senior counselor to the president.
“Steve and Reince are highly qualified leaders who worked well together on our campaign and led us to a historic victory,” Trump said in the announcement.
The developments come at an extraordinarily divisive period in American politics.
President-elect Trump with Reince Priebus on election night. Priebus will serve as chief of staff in Trump’s White House.
In urban centers, protesters are speaking out against the presidential election, decrying the bombastic — and sometimes offensive — rhetoric that Trump used during the election season. Republicans, though giddy at the prospect of a conservative White House, Congress, and Supreme Court, are also unclear on just how much of Trump’s lofty campaign promises he will attempt to fulfill.
Indeed, in the “60 Minutes” interview, Trump signaled that part of his promised wall at the Mexico border — a signature pledge during his campaign — might actually be a fence.
Elsewhere on Sunday, Republican leaders also seemed to back away from some of Trump’s policy promises, including jailing Clinton, building the border wall, and implementing a deportation force.
Speaking on Fox News, the House majority leader, Kevin McCarthy, said he does not expect Congress to push any further investigations of Clinton, despite the often-repeated rallying cry of “Lock her up!” at Trump’s rallies. McCarthy also expressed skepticism at the idea of mass deportations.
‘‘First thing you have to do is secure the border and then we’ll have discussions,” McCarthy said.
Ryan, the House speaker who has rallied behind Trump after months of carefully putting distance between himself and the nominee, was more direct than McCarthy.
“I think we should put people’s minds at ease. That is not what our focus is,” said Ryan, of Wisconsin.
Ryan’s words and the seemingly moderated tone of the president-elect might not calm the fears of Democrats, protesters nationwide, and historically marginalized communities, many of which felt demonized throughout the Trump campaign.
Some left-leaning activists have reacted to Trump’s election by rushing to social media to claim Trump is #NotMyPresident, despite the looming truth of Inauguration Day. Others, such as US Senator Cory Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, accepted the election results but pledged to hold Trump accountable for the divisive rhetoric he at times deployed.
This sentiment, coupled with a recent flare of incidents in which self-described Trump voters were harassing people of different cultures, has received a mixed reaction from Trump’s closest advisers — and the president-elect himself.
Trump has made clear that he intends to use Twitter to get his message out, and he continued to snipe at the media over the weekend.
Stephen Bannon, whom Donald Trump named his senior counselor and chief West Wing strategist, at Trump Tower Saturday.
“Wow, the @nytimes is losing thousands of subscribers because of their very poor and highly inaccurate coverage of the ‘Trump phenomena,’” Trump wrote in a tweet posted at 3 a.m. Sunday.
In the “60 Minutes” interview, Trump explained that he uses Twitter to “get the word out’’ and go around traditional media outlets.
“When you give me a bad story, or when you give me an inaccurate story,” Trump said, “I have a method of fighting back.” He vowed to be “very restrained” in his Twitter posts.
On the Sunday morning political talk shows, Trump’s surrogates and advisers downplayed the nationwide anger that continued to surface since his surprising win. Instead, each attempted to recast Trump as a political unifier, a humbled leader capable of compromise and willing to govern for all Americans.
There is one area in which Democrats and Republicans agree: the need for Trump to sign a robust law investing in the country’s infrastructure.
Former House speaker Newt Gingrich, a Trump adviser, mentioned public works projects on CBS News’s “Face the Nation” Sunday, and on CBS News, Senator Bernie Sanders highlighted infrastructure as one area of possible common ground.
“Let’s see the details. But, in general, rebuilding our infrastructure is absolutely imperative for this country,” said Sanders, an independent of Vermont.
Sanders cautioned Trump against claiming any electoral mandate from Tuesday’s results, since Clinton received more votes nationally than Trump.
“We are the majority,” Sanders said.
Astead W. Herndon can be reached at astead.herndon@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter@AsteadWH.
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The Congress of South African Trade Unions has noted the latest cabinet reshuffle by President Jacob Zuma. We can confirm that the federation did receive a courtesy call from President Jacob Zuma regarding his decision to reshuffle his cabinet this morning.
While, we acknowledge that the president of the republic has a prerogative to reshuffle his National Executive as per the Constitution of the republic, we find the frequency of these cabinet reshuffles unsettling because they do not help to create the much needed stability at a government level. What compounds the situation is that some of these government departments are also witnessing an exodus of senior technocrats.
All of this is happening while workers and the poor are continuing to be victims of a system that has condemned millions of our fellow citizens to lives of brute survival. Our economy is currently haemorrhaging jobs at an alarming rate and it does not help that we are also experiencing this kind of political uncertainty and policy incoherence from government.
COSATU expects cabinet reshuffles to be about strengthening the capacity of government in order to help government to better implement its developmental agenda and deliver on its promises. We are not convinced that this reshuffle is informed by that ,considering that some of the most ineffectual ministers like Minister Bathabile Dlamini, Minister Nomvula Mokonyane, and Minister Mosebenzi Zwane are still part of the National Executive.
These recent cabinet reshuffles have done very little to help take the National Democratic Revolution forward. We call on the African National Congress to reflect deeply about the state of the economy and the overall performance of its government. The majority of workers are facing a bleak future and the people South Africa need a clear sign that the government has a plan to rescue them from poverty and kick-start this economy.
As COSATU , we will continue to work with and support the newly elected ministers and deputy ministers with the hope that they will prioritise a people driven and people centred development. We wish them well in their new positions.
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Billionaire Mark Cuban offered some advice to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) this week, urging the newly anointed congresswoman to avoid the “bad habit” of partisanship when relaying her message to the masses.
An avowed socialist, Ocasio-Cortez rocketed to political stardom during the 2018 midterm elections after unseating fellow Democrat Joe Crowley en route to the U.S. House of Representatives. The congresswoman engaged in a war of words with House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) last weekend after he criticized her proposal to pay for a “Green New Deal” policy initiative by imposing a 70 percent tax on the rich.
“My point is that right now Pelosi=McCarthy=Schumer=McConnell=all the same. Now would be a great time for the new generation of politicians, across the board, to take a new approach. We need you to represent us all. The partisan approach doesn’t work,” Cuban wrote.
Cuban, who appears on ABC’s “Shark Tank” and owns the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, has also mulled the possibility of running for office. He is frequently mentioned as a potential presidential candidate in 2020.
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LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-An angry landlord on Wednesday sealed a flat house at Area 6 in the capital Lilongwe for Zodiak Broadcasting Corporation Managing Director Gospel Kazako for non payment of rentals.
According to information gathered reveals that Kazako has been giving excuses to the owner of the Area 6 flats which he stays, and in return not fulfilling the promise to sort his bills.
The sources added that ZBS boss is in financial crisis following his financing of UTM party of Saulos Chilima in a bid to be picked as a running mate.
Kazako has been giving free advertising to UTM and coverage at the expense of ZBS airtime, a development which had disturbed his cash flow.
The landlord has since said Kazako will only access the house if hr pays the bills or risks losing everything in the house to cover for the rentals.
Efforts to get Kazako’s side of the story proved futile on several attempts as his mobile number could not be reached.
The development comes barely a month after two senior and talented presenters Joseph Mwanoka and and Lucy Chimwanza left the station.
Not only that just two weeks ago another two senior officers also pressed an existing button.
The senior ZBS senior members leaving includes Africano Phiri, Director of Marketing (who have been with the station since 2006) and Steve Chikopa Head of Finance and Administration.
Sources with the station told the Maravi Post that the due are leaving ZBS over to poor leadership from management and politics at the office.
Information gathered reveals that since the coming in of ZBS Managing Director Gospel Kazako’s brother Grey Kazako who became the station’s General manager things have not been operating well as he is accused of abusive, oppressive tendencies.
So far in 2018, ZBS lost 20 employees some of them including Don Stanley Kamwanthendo Joseph and Teresa Ndanga.
A Kazako inu ife timakupatsani ulemu, onani mwagulitsa station ku UTM omwe kuludza kwao ndikosayamba. Mumadzudzula boma za nepotism, nanga zomwe mwachita ku campan yanuyo kubweretsa mchimwene wanu si nepotism?
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Boston Marathon Bombing Suspect Enters Not Guilty Pleas In 1st Public Court HearingFor the first plea, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev leaned toward a microphone and said, "Not guilty,'' in a Russian accent. He then said not guilty repeatedly about a half-dozen more times.
Mayors Against Illegal Guns Apologizes For Calling Boston Bombing Suspect Victim Of Gun Violence The event is part of the gun-control group's 25-state "No More Names" tour, which is part of its campaign to build support for legislation to expand background checks for gun buyers.
CBS News: Attack At Boston Marathon Was Supposed To Happen On July 4The official also said that Tsarnaev revealed that the bombs were constructed at his older brother Tamerlan's residence and that Tamerlan had brought Dzhokhar into the plot a couple of months before.
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These are commercial building permits on file with Cleveland County for the month of September.
Location: 525 W. Zion Church Rd.
Location: 110 S. Main St.
Location: 4357 W. Dixon Blvd.
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In the market for a low-cost networked storage solution? You may want to take a look at the Netgear ReadyNAS 104.
Typically, home users have been subjected to very few, true performance NAS products. If you wanted true performance, you had to reach a little deeper into your pocket, and pull out a bit more of that hard earned money.
With Netgear being an industry leader in network storage solutions, it seems only fitting that they would offer top to bottom storage solutions for every sector of the market. Today, on this crisp winter morning, we will be looking over the Netgear ReadyNAS 104. The RN104 is a four bay NAS appliance that caters to the needs of consumers that want personal cloud storage. It offers standard features like a home media and file server, coupled together with low entry cost.
The RN104 is built upon the Marvell ARMADA 370 platform, clocked at 1.2 GHz, with 512MB of memory to accompany it. Across the front of the unit, we have four 3.5" drive trays that support tool-less installation. Total storage capacity is listed at 16TB, with dual gigabit LAN ports at the rear of the unit.
For quick management of the NAS, we have a two line LCD screen on the front of the unit, with dual USB 3.0 ports, and eSATA for additional storage options. Power consumption is listed at 45 watts for operation, and 1.4 watts with WOL enabled.
Pricing of the four bay Netgear ReadyNAS 104 is listed at $319.99, without drives. The unit carries a three-year warranty from Netgear.
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The FINANCIAL (AD) -- ProCredit Bank has donated a unique ex libris collection to the National Centre of Manuscripts. This donation was part of a project jointly initiated by the National Centre of Manuscripts and ProCredit Bank, in which the Bank bought a unique collection of ex librises from a private individual living in Thessaloniki, Greece.
Many of the graphic images on the ex librises were the work of Georgian painters, so their donation to the National Centre of Manuscripts is a very important contribution to preserving the heritage of Georgian manuscripts. They carry additional information about the life and creative work of Georgia’s artists and important public figures.
“From ProCredit Bank’s side we are extremely delighted to have had the chance to support Georgia’s culture and inheritance of manuscripts. It’s extremely rewarding to have had the chance to hand over this unique and interesting collection of ex librises to the National Centre of Manuscripts; that we had the opportunity to obtain these very interesting examples of Georgian culture and history. By handing this collection today to the National Centre of Manuscripts we also, one more time, want to demonstrate our support for the development of Georgian culture. All in all I think it’s a very promising beginning for a hopefully fruitful and long-lasting relationship with the National Centre of Manuscripts,” said Sascha Ternes, General Director of JSC ProCredit Bank.
“In the National Centre of Manuscripts there are manuscripts, historical documents, archival materials and library collections. This is one of the largest collections across the country. It has been gathering material and growing since the 19th century; this process is still ongoing and will never be finished. The collection has mainly grown from people’s donations, except for a few exceptions. Over the years we received donations from individuals, families, from private companies, public and private organizations. And the result is a unique collection which is now protected by the National Centre of Manuscripts,” he added.
“Today, one of the priorities for us is searching for new materials and continuing the pursuit of our great ancestors, who began collecting such materials in the 19th century. We also have another sub-priority, as just like this material was found in a foreign country, great care is needed not to lose Georgia-related materials that may be located abroad. They shouldn’t fall into someone else’s hands, in some cases private collectors. Then the trace will be lost,” Buba Kudava said.
“We were searching over the internet with our colleagues for information of this sort, and we managed to connect with an individual in Thessaloniki, Greece. We asked them to send us information on a regular basis about Georgia-related materials. And indeed they sent us the ex libris collection and when we showed this material to experts, it turned out to be very interesting. There are many famous figures associated with these ex librises. On the one hand, one part of this collection was designed by well-known artists. The second part is known because it is created for famous statesmen, but by a lesser-known Georgian painter. The first is the Elene Akhvlediani ex libris, the second is the Sergo Kobuladze ex libris. We did not have a separate collection of ex librises until now. Of course there are such materials in archives and in books, but so far we have not had such an amount of ex librises,” he said.
“Ex librises were invented along with book printing and were an integral part of a book through the ages. Today, some of them are considered works of art. That is why participation in such a project is very important for ProCredit Bank, and we are very pleased that this unique ex libris collection has been added to the heritage of Georgian manuscripts,” said Sascha Ternes, General Director of JSC ProCredit Bank.
The term “ex libris” is Latin for “from the library of”, and is used to describe a printed label on the inside front cover of a book indicating the name of the owner. In the past, ex librises often took the form of a drawing, an emblem or an illustration of some famous event, sometimes by a famous artist.
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Jerry Springer says he is still deciding whether he will run for Ohio governor in 2018.
Speculation around Springer’s potential gubernatorial bid has been growing for several months.
The Enquirer also reported Wednesday that Springer is soliciting feedback from Ohio State Sen. Sandra Williams, Democratic Reps. Janine Boyd and Stephanie Howse, and political consultants.
“Glad to be in attendance @ rep’s Stephanie Howse and Janine Boyd fundraiser w/Jerry Springer, possible candidate for Gov. of Ohio,” Williams tweeted Tuesday.
“He’s very serious,” Williams said of Springer’s interest in running, in an interview with Cleveland.com.
The fundraiser was held at Nighttown, a Cleveland Heights jazz club and restaurant.
Ring said Springer gave a brief speech at the fundraiser.
Springer, 73, previously considered running for US Senate in 2000 and 2004, but decided against it.
He has previously attributed the rumors around his potential bid for governor to former reality TV star Donald Trump’s successful White House bid.
But people continued to discuss Springer’s potential return to politics.
In late May, Business Insider, citing more than half a dozen Democrats familiar with the race, reported influential Ohio Democrats — including former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and Hamilton County Democratic Party Chairman Tim Burke — pushed for Springer to run.
In an interview with CNN’s Brooke Baldwin in May of 2016, Springer — who supported Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016 — was seemingly unsurprised by Trump’s popularity. He said that since President Ronald Reagan, a generation of Americans has grown up believing government is the problem in America.
“The celebrity in politics was inevitable,” Springer said.
Since Trump’s win, a growing number of celebrities have expressed interest in running for office, or have not ruled out pursuing politics in the future.
“I think it’s a real possibility,” Johnson told the publication when asked if he would ever run.
In July, a West Virginia resident created a campaign committee called “Run The Rock 2020” to draft Johnson as a presidential candidate in 2020.
Musician Kid Rock teased a potential bid for US Senate, but ultimately used the social media hype around the buzz to announce his non-profit designed to promote voter registration.
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OKLAHOMA CITY- A metro family is looking for answers after their 21-year-old daughter was found dead.
Police are saying the death of Sandra Stevens appears to be a suicide, but those closest to her think someone else might be responsible.
Sandra’s mother says there’s no way her daughter took her own life. She says Sandra had just finished hair school and was working at a local restaurant.
“She had the most beautiful smile and a twinkle in her eye,” Sylvia Stevens said.
She says her daughter was always so full of life.
“You can see most of her pictures, she was always happy, she had plans for her future,” Stevens said.
That future was cut short after what happened inside a northwest Oklahoma City home.
About a month ago, Sandy moved in with her boyfriend of two months.
On Dec. 6, police rushed to Sandy's new place to investigate a shooting.
When they arrived, officers found her dead inside the home.
Her boyfriend told police she killed herself with a shotgun, but her family says she never would've done that.
Sandy went to her parents’ home the night before her death. Her mother says Sandra and her boyfriend were fighting.
Her parents say she wanted to move back home.
“She was upset, and my husband told her she needed to finish the relationship,” Stevens said.
That was the last time Sylvia saw her daughter alive.
Allegedly, there were a couple of people other than her boyfriend at the scene when Sandy died.
When NewsChannel 4 went to speak with those alleged witnesses, they were not happy to learn about the story.
“I want the truth. I want the truth,” Stevens said.
Sylvia says she’ll never give up on getting her questions answered.
A Facebook page dedicated to her daughter, called “Justice for Sandra Stevens,” has more than 3,000 likes.
“She loved life, and she knew she was loved. I have faith with all my heart that justice will be made. Justice is going to be for Sandy, justice for Sandy,” Stevens said.
Police say this is still an active investigation, adding that they have interviewed Sandy's boyfriend.
The family is holding out hope that they’ll be able to piece together what really happened.
They requested an autopsy, but the medical examiner’s office says it has not finished the report yet.
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Ozier Muhammad/The New York TimesReynaldo Rodriguez of the Care Coordination program counseled a patient with H.I.V. on how to adhere to a drug regimen.
Doctors are very good at telling us what to do — but we are very poor at doing it. In fact, the health problems of millions of Americans are directly related to our failure to follow doctors’ orders.
Doctors tell us to take our pills, exercise, go get that C.T. scan, stop smoking, change our diets, cut out salt, quit drinking, monitor our blood sugar. We know we should do it, but we very often don’t. About three-quarters of patients do not keep appointments for follow-up care. In one study of diabetes patients, only 7 percent were compliant enough with their treatment plans to control the disease. Even people at grave and immediate risk do not always take their medicines: a quarter of kidney transplant patients in one study did not take their medicines correctly, putting them at risk for organ rejection. Among elderly patients with congestive heart failure, 15 percent of repeat hospitalizations were linked to failure to take prescribed medicines. And compliance with exercise and diet programs is even worse. Poor compliance is a major reason that sick people don’t get better, and that our health care costs are so high.
It is a reason that often gets ignored. Many doctors are uncomfortable wrestling with adherence. They may even believe that it is not their problem, that their job is done when they write the prescription or hand the patient a diet plan. But even concerned doctors would find themselves helpless in a 10-minute office visit. They are too removed from their patients, too much the authority figure to really get to the bottom of why a patient isn’t doing what he is supposed to.
Bad adherence doesn’t discriminate by social class. Tens of millions of Americans struggle with high cholesterol and blood pressure and yet can’t manage to stick to an exercise program. Far fewer — but far sicker and more expensive to the health care system — are the handful of emergency room frequent flyers: people with multiple serious conditions such as AIDS, diabetes, hypertension, depression, mental illness, social isolation, substance abuse or domestic violence. Such people have extraordinary problems sticking to their plans to get better, and need extraordinary help.
Joe McManus is a 56-year-old former heroin and crack addict who lives in a single-resident-occupancy apartment in Manhattan. He spent 15 years as an addict, about 10 of them homeless. In some ways, he’s far from the typical homeless person. He used to work on Wall Street and still retains some of his Wall Street friends. In 2005, one of those friends took him to the Super Bowl.
In other ways, he is absolutely typical of drug users who have hit bottom. McManus has AIDS, Hepatitis C and liver problems. “My doctors went three or four years with me not showing up,” he said in a recent interview in his apartment. “I had no relationship with her — except for her to put me in the hospital because I didn’t listen to what she had to say. I was still not addressing the fact that I was H.I.V.-positive. I was not taking my medicine and only going to the hospital when I had to be put in the hospital. I was still messing around with drugs.” McManus was hospitalized four times in the year before November, 2009. Then he got a visit from Reynaldo Rodriguez.
When Rodriguez first visited McManus, he had already quit drugs, on his own. But he was still living as if he were homeless. His apartment was covered with soot and grime, the bed had cigarette burns and the refrigerator held moldy food. McManus was treating his apartment like it was the street. “How the hell are you living like this?” Rodriguez blurted out.
It made a difference. McManus started taking his medicines. The medicines brought down his viral load — he was getting better, and that motivated him to take care of himself. McManus is thin and twitchy, but when I saw him was dressed in jeans and a nice zippered sweater, and the apartment was in reasonable condition. McManus is now 100 percent adherent to his medicines, and his hospital stays amounted to only a single night in the last 16 months. He said that part of it was a spiritual awakening, but it was clear that Rodriguez played a huge role. McManus now goes to all his doctor’s appointments on his own.
But that doesn’t mean he follows all of his doctor’s advice. He’s no longer doing crack, but he’s still drinking — several nights a week he goes to hang out in a friend’s bar. He loves the bar — it’s his entire social network.
But his Hepatitis C makes this dangerous behavior, and his doctor was stern: “You can not ever have a drink again. Not even on your birthday,” she told him. “I never have to tell you if I ever have one,” McManus thought to himself.
Rodriguez and McManus worked out a compromise: he could keep going to the bar, but he had to tell his friends about his health problems so they would put the brakes on. He had to try to drink less, and keep doing tests that monitored his liver.
“He’s been very honest with me,” Rodriguez said. Why more than with your doctor? I asked McManus.
“She’s a doctor,” he said.
The Care Coordination program, a city-wide initiative now in 28 sites in different hospitals around New York, was inspired and trained by a Boston-based program called PACT, for Prevention, Access to Care and Treatment. PACT is part of Partners in Health — a nongovernmental group famous for its work in Haiti, Rwanda and elsewhere. Part of Partners’ strategy is to use people from the community who are paid a stipend to visit patients, watch them take their pills and support them. Since 1995, PACT has been using these ideas in tough neighborhoods of Boston, first with H.I.V. patients and now with people with chronic diseases such as diabetes. The PACT project trains people from the community, some of whom have the same diseases and similar problems as their patients, to be community health workers.
The new health reform law encourages pilot programs to try different forms of medical homes, and the better care and cost savings that come from improving adherence with peers or lay people like Rodriguez are attractive. The New Yorker magazine writer Atul Gawande recently profiled two clinics that use this model, in Atlantic City and Camden, N.J.
There are successful programs that use nurses for outreach. The Nurse-Family Partnership sends nurses to visit low-income first-time mothers, beginning in pregnancy and continuing until the child is two. The program now operates in 32 states and has proven to greatly improve the life of both child and mother. The Camden program that Gawande wrote about also uses nurses and nurse practitioners to make home visits.
But nurses are expensive home visitors, and they may not even be the best people for the job. “Given the rising cost of health care, we have found having peer-based health promoters providing care management is an equally effective way to provide high-quality care at a low cost,” said Ayesha Cammaerts, the director of operations at PACT. “Especially with patients who suffer from substance abuse and mental health issues, they need someone they feel comfortable letting into their environment. Sometimes patients don’t feel they can connect to clinicians from outside their community,” she said.
PACT’s methods work. A study of AIDS patients found that the patients’ use of appropriate medicines rose — they were becoming adherent. At the same time, spending on hospitalization dropped by nearly two-thirds. Overall, patient costs dropped by 36 percent. Even taking into account the $6,000-per-patient cost of PACT, patient costs dropped 16 percent. And in a group of people who would likely have died if they had not been in the program, 70 showed clinical improvement.
The PACT method is likely to be an important part of the future of American medicine. Many of the deficiencies of American health care require not more technology, but the human touch. It’s certainly true for high-risk, high-cost patients, but it can help nearly everyone get better health for less money. In Saturday’s column, I’ll write about how.
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If you would like to support the Down Syndrome Association of West Michigan's campaign of kindness, you may visit the organization's crowd funding site to help pay for supplies. The more money raised, the more random acts of kindness those in our community with Down syndrome will be able to commit.
The Down Syndrome Association of West Michigan is a resource and advocacy organization promoting public awareness and supporting lifelong opportunities for individuals with Down syndrome and their families. Down syndrome is the most commonly occurring chromosomal condition, with one in every 700 babies being born with Down syndrome. There are more than 400,000 people living with Down syndrome in the United States. For more information, visit www.dsawm.org.
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Some 3,839 new vehicles were registered in Qatar last month, the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics said while noting this was 14.1% lower than in the previous month.
In June, some 4,471 new vehicles were registered in Qatar.
MDPS, in its monthly statistical bulletin, said there was a significant increase in the number of sold properties in July.
The number stood at 238, a 76.3% increase compared to June.
The bulletin shows a decrease in the total value of sold properties, which has stood at nearly QR1.83bn in July, down 48.8% on the previous month.
According to MDPS, Qatar’s population stood at 2.4mn in July, up 6.3% on the same period last year. In July, 2016 the country’s population stood at about 2.3mn.
MDPS statistics showed that Qatar recorded a total of 2,205 births in July and as many as 172 deaths in the same month.
The total number of registered marriages was 299 in July, while the total number of divorce cases was 63 during the same month.
On the beneficiaries of social security, the bulletin put their number at 13,649 in July. The total value of social security reached nearly QR78.3mn in July.
With regard to electricity and water consumption, the bulletin said the total electricity utilisation during July was 4,521.8GWh, attaining a monthly increase of 4.6% compared with June.
Total water consumption reached 45,304,7000m3 during the same month, registering a monthly decrease of 3.3%.
The number of building permits was 629 during July, up 53% on June.
A total of 451 traffic cases were recorded during July, resulting in a monthly decrease of 7.4% compared to June. At the same time, as many as 11 deaths in relation to traffic cases were registered last month.
MDPS said the total number of visitors to Qatar was 1.57mn in July, the largest number (about 42%) arriving from the GCC countries.
Total broad money supply (M2) recorded about QR532bn during July, showing an annual increase of 8.3% compared with the same period in 2016.
On the other hand, “cash equivalents” (including deposits) were valued at QR772.5bn in July.
This shows an annual increase of 12.8% in comparison with July last year, when it stood at nearly QR685bn.
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Affordable .28 Ac lot with low yearly taxes of $61.00. No time limit to build. Privacy and tranquility to enjoy. Close to rivers, lakes, Ocala National Forrest, fishing, boating, kayaking, hunting and camping. Hwys 441/301/27. Not far from shopping, schools, businesses, the Villages, and the City of Ocala. Build your dream home or invest now. Schedule a viewing of the property on paved road.
Nice affordable lot! Great size for building your dream home!
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creator Jeff Miller, Rodman is unhappy with the negative way the video game portrays him and has asked Miller to remove his character from the game.
The motion comes after North Korea has been accused of hacking into Sony Entertainment's computers and leaking hundreds of confidential — and extremely embarrassing — emails. The cyber-terrorist attack was the first of its kind and resulted in Sony canceling the release of The Interview, which portrays James Franco and Seth Rogan killing Kim Jong-un.
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Gloria Williams Sander is hoping that her home in Glendale’s North Cumberland Heights neighborhood soon will become a historical district.
With her neighbor Susan Dasso and others, Williams Sander canvassed the neighborhood a few years ago to learn if anyone had any interest in making the neighborhood a historical district.
“The feedback was really positive,” she said.
The area’s homes were built between the 1920s and early 1950s in the styles of Mediterranean Revival, Monterey Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, Ranch Style and Minimal Traditional.
For her, the neighborhood’s openness and uniformity of scale represents “the best of a certain moment in history.” The neighborhood’s beauty lured Williams Sander and her husband there in 1998 from Silver Lake.
Williams Sander is familiar with beauty. She’s a curator at Pasadena’s Norton Simon Museum, where she has worked since 1987 shortly after earning her master’s in art history at USC.
“The best thing about Gloria is she knows so much about art, yet she is so happy to share it in a way that does not make you feel you don’t know anything, even though, really, I know nothing about it,” she said. “She makes art enjoyable and she’s so open to accepting all different kinds of art,” said Betty Astor, a friend.
While Williams Sander does not consider herself an artist, her husband is a painter. And for her family of three, including their son Ian, Glendale is a blessing.
And though she’s put considerable effort into lobbying for North Cumberland Heights to become a historical district, it’s been worth it, she said.
According to Jay Platt of the Historic Preservation Commission, for North Cumberland Heights to become a historical district, the city needs to see support from more than 50% of the area’s property owners.
Royal Boulevard, Cottage Grove and Ard Eevin Highlands encompass Glendale’s three historical districts. They achieved that designation in 2008 or later.
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in French). Nov. 19 at 3:30: "Walkabout" (1971, Nicolas Roeg). Nov. 20 at 1 and Nov. 22 at 4:40: "Mean Streets" (1973, Martin Scorsese). Nov. 20 at 3:15: "Christmas in July" (1940, Preston Stur- ges). Nov. 20 at 4:45: "Mouchette" (1967, Robert Bresson; in French). Nov. 21 at 1 and Nov. 23 at 4:45: "His Girl Friday" (1940, Howard Hawks). Nov. 21 at 3 and Nov. 22 at 9: "I Walked with a Zombie" (t). Nov. 22 at 7, Nov. 23 at 8:45, and Nov. 25 at 2: "Scarface" (1932, Hawks). Nov. 23 at 1: "I Was Born, But. . ." (1932, Yasujiro Ozu; si- lent). Nov. 23 at 3: "Not Reconciled" (t). Nov. 23 at 6:45 and Nov. 25 at 4: "The Lineup" (1958, Don Siegel). A tribute to Frank Sinatra. Nov. 19 at 8:30: "Some Came Running" (1958, Vincente Minnelli), introduced by Adrian Wootton. "Golden Silents." Nov. 21 at 7: "The Docks of New York" (1928, Joseph von Sternberg; silent). A Tribute to Pierre Clémenti. Nov. 25 at 6:15: "Les Idoles" (1968, Marc'o; in French). READINGS AND TALKS MCNAllY JACKSON BOOKS The sixties vets Ed McClanhan, the author of the newly published autobiographical short -story collec- tion "0 the Clear Moment," and the novelist Robert Stone take a look back at the consequential decade. (52 Prince St. No tickets necessary. Nov. 19 at 7.) CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK The poet and memoirist Mark Doty reads from his work. (Graduate Center, Fifth Ave. at 34th St. No tickets necessary. Nov. 20 at 7.) BARNES &amp; NOBLE The actor Christopher Plummer offers selections from his memoir, "In Spite of Myself." (Broadway at 66th St. No tickets necessary. Nov. 21 at 7:30.) SOlAS St. Mark's Bookshop runs a reading series at this watering hole, which is just around the corner from its East Village home. On Nov. 24 at 7:30, it pre- sents the novelist Junot Díaz and the science-fiction master Samuel R. Delany. (232 E. 9th St. No tickets necessary. ) ABOVE AND BEYOND ON THIN ICE The American Museum of Natural History is open- ing a skating rink outside its doors on Nov. 22. The rink, which is a hundred and fifty feet by eighty feet, can accommodate up to two hundred people; at its center is a seventeen-foot-tall polar bear made of stainless steel, boxwood boughs, and lights. But what really makes the rink special is its surface: instead of ice, it's made of a special global-wanning-proof plas- tic. (Central Park \XZ at 79th St. For more informa- tion, call 212-769-5200. Through Feb. 28.) AUCTIONS AND ANTIQUES With the two-week Impressionist -modern-postwar- contemporary smackdown over and done, the auc- tion houses settle back into their new everyday busi- ness-trying to sell expensive works of art in the midst of a bear market. This week, that means works by Latin-American masters. The painter Rufino Tamayo, who ably combined elements of Cubism and Surrealism with Mexican themes and a keen sense of color, is represented by six works in Sothe- by's Latin-American sales (Nov. 18-19). The most important is a monumental canvas from 1955, "America," which for the past fifteen years has been on view at the Dallas Museum of Art. The Tamayos will share the podium with works by the Uruguayan- born modernist Joaquín Torres-García and his fol- lowers (known as the School of the South) and by several female Surrealist painters, including Reme- dios Varo and Leonora Carrington. (York Ave. at 72nd St. 212-606-7000.) Christie's Latin-American sale (Nov. 19-20) also features a smattering of Tamayos, the most highly valued of which, "Sere- nata a la Luna," depicts a solitary figure serenading the glowing night sky with a guitar. But the leading lot in this sale-which also includes works by Car- rington, Matta, and the Argentinean artist Emilio Pettoruti-is by Torres-García, a stained-glass-like composition entitled "Tres Figuras." A few days later, the house shows a more playful side in a pop- culture sale devoted to punk and rock-and-roll items and designer toys (Nov. 24); fans can bid on one of Bob Marley's guitars or on the portable organ played by John Lennon at Shea Stadium in 1965, as well as vintage posters and flyers for the Ramones and the Clash. (20 Rockefeller Plaza, at 49th St. 212-636-2000.) For its upcoming auction of mod- em and contemporary editions (Nov. 23), Phillips has gone all out, printing a special catalogue help- fully entitled "Collect This Catalogue," which in- cludes four original prints by the artists Hilary Hark- ness, James Hyde, William Pope.L, and Kay Rosen. The sale itself contains some striking pieces, includ- ing two lithographs by Jean Dubuffet from his "As- semblages" as well as the whimsical engraving "Score for Ballet 0-100" by Alexander Calder. (450 W. 15th St. 212-940-1200.) NEWYORKER.COM Visit the Goings On blog, at www.newyorker. com/go/goingson, for additional cultural cover- age and commentary. /' <=I "-.."'"1 "" " -- .. '" ., . --_ /' ':ìf tij' , I , /' / ON THE HORIZON MOVIES COLD TURKEY Nov. 28-30 As a welcome corrective to Thanksgiving-weekend sentimentality, Walter Reade presents three days of rain on your parade, with the series "Problem Child: A Cinematic Display of Bad Behavior." The program includes such bilious classics as "The Exorcist," "The F "" M . D " ury, ommle earest, and the rare "Tomorrow, the World!," from 1944, about a teen-age Nazi in >- an American college town. z (212-875-5600.) ,/ I / \ )) .- 4'f \ .- i q \ .- / ART TESTING HIS METAL Dec. 9-Mareh 1 Alexander Calder is best known for his mobiles, but he was a prolific jewelry maker as well. A hundred or so whimsical brass, silver, and gold pieces-some set with beach glass or found bits of wood in lieu of gems-will be exhibited at the Met in "Calder Jewelry." (212-535-7710.) NIGHT LIFE TIN MAN Dec. 9-18 Ten years ago, Howard Fishman, a local singer and songwriter whose 36 THE NEW YORKER, NOVEMBER 24, 2008 -;-" . , / J JI j/ V , ,,/ \J ' .. 1 interests range from swinging small-group jazz to Bob Dylan's "Basement Tapes," made his début at the Algonquin Hoters famed Oak Room. In celebration of that anniversary, he's appearing there and at many other clubs in Brooklyn and Manhattan. (www. howardfishman.com.) CLASSICAL MUSIC STRIKING TWICE Dec. 9, Dec. 11-13 When the Bang On a Can composer Michael Gordon and the visual wizards of Ridge Theatre got together in Brooklyn in 2004, the result was the . thrilling musical film " D ." h iT ecaSla ; now t ey Oller "Lightning at Our Feet," a song cycle inspired by Emily Dickinson, at the BAM Harvey Theatre. (718-636-4100.) THE THEATRE DATE NIGHT Dec. 16 Gina Gionfriddo's new comedy, "Becky Shaw," comes to Second Stage. Peter DuBois directs the play, in which a newlywed couple try their hand at matchmaking. (212-246-4422.) "Lightning at Our Feet, " at the BAM Harvey Theatre.
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Authorities are asking for the public's help in identifying and locating the man pictured in this photo.
Police are investigating an alleged robbery at a South Lake Tahoe credit union Thursday evening.
The incident occurred at the Sierra Central Credit Union, 3668 Lake Tahoe Blvd., at 5:30 p.m., according to the South Lake Tahoe Police Department.
A security camera captured a white male adult wearing a fake beard and black pinstripe suit holding what appears to be a piece of paper in front of a teller.
Anyone who witnessed the incident is asked to call the South Lake Tahoe Police Department at 530-542-6100.
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CAE, based in Montreal, announced a contract amendment with Gulf Aviation Academy (GAA) to provide a CAE 7000 Series Embraer 170/190 full-flight simulator (FFS). The change order amends a contract signed in June 2009 by GAA's parent company, Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, and reflects their decision to switch an A330/340 simulator to an Embraer 170/190 FFS. The CAE 7000 Series Embraer 170/190 FFS will be delivered later this year to Gulf Aviation Academy's new training centre, which currently includes a CAE 5000 Series A320 FFS with another CAE 5000 Series A320 FFS to be delivered soon. The Embraer 170/190 simulator will feature the CAE Tropos-6000 visual system and CAE True electric motion system.
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HANOI, Vietnam – Vietnam&apos;s government has vowed to crack down on three dissident blogs, a move that appeared to backfire Thursday as record numbers of people visited the sites and the bloggers pledged to keep up their struggle for freedom of expression.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung&apos;s order for police to arrest those responsible for the websites reflects growing unease within the Communist Party over the emergence of blogs and social media accounts that publish dissenting views, independent reporting and whistleblowing. The party doesn&apos;t allow free media, and fears criticism or discussion of its failings on the Internet could lead to social instability and — ultimately — loss of its power.
"Nobody can shut our mouth or stop our freedom of expression," said a member of the team that administers one of the targeted blogs, Danlambao. "This is our mission. We will continue at any cost." The blogger chatted over the Internet with The Associated Press on the condition that his name and exact location not be published because of the risk of arrest.
Danlambao, or "Citizens&apos; Journalism," is one of the most prominent of several dissident blogs that have sprung up in the last two years.
It has attracted thousands of viewers in recent weeks because of its reporting on suspected power struggles among the ruling elite that it says may have been behind the arrest of a banking tycoon last month. It has speculated that the detention of Nguyen Duc Kien, said to be close to the prime minister&apos;s daughter, was the result of tensions between the premier and the president.
Late Wednesday, the government said Danlambao and two others sites had been "publishing distorted and fabricated articles" against the leadership. It said that Vietnamese state employees were forbidden from visiting the sites.
It is not illegal for Vietnamese to visit the targeted sites, but they are blocked by the government&apos;s firewall. Vietnam blocks many sensitive websites, though the firewall is fairly easy to get around.
"This is a wicked plot of the hostile forces," a government statement said, adding that the prime minister had ordered police to arrest those associated with the sites.
The statement led to a surge in visitors to the sites as curious Vietnamese wanted to see what they had been publishing, according to the blogs.
The Danlambao blog said it was on course to have more than 500,000 page views Thursday, more than double its normal amount, thanks to what it called the unintended public relations coup handed to it by the government.
One of the other targeted sites, Quanlambao, or the "Officials&apos; Journalism" blog, said Dung&apos;s threat was meant to lay the legal groundwork for a campaign of arrests against bloggers.
The blogger contacted by The AP said Dung mentioned their site by name to try to scare contributors from contacting it.
"They (the government) are losing control of the independent blogs," the blogger said. "Not just our one."
The blogger said Danlambao&apos;s sources of information were other bloggers, journalists who work for state-run media, ordinary citizens and Communist Party members seeking to damage other factions within the party. Some of the material comes from reading between the lines of reports in the state-run media, the blogger said.
"They provide us the bullets and we shoot — because they can&apos;t," the blogger said.
International watchdog Reporters Without Borders says there are currently at least five journalists and 19 bloggers being held on various charges in Vietnam, part of a gathering government effort to stifle criticism over the last two years even as the country presses ahead with opening its economy to foreign investment. The government labels democracy and free speech activists as terrorists.
Journalists working for foreign news organization are allowed to live in the country but must ask permission to report outside the capital. That is routinely denied if the subject of the story is seen as sensitive or damaging to Vietnam.
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FILE - Guinea security forces, center, face people rioting and burning rubbish and other goods in the streets of Conakry, April 13, 2015.
Guinean security forces clashed with anti-government protesters in the opposition stronghold of Labe on Thursday, beating one man to death, the government said.
"His friends got away but he was captured and beaten in the heat of the moment," said Moustapha Naite, deputy government spokesman. "He didn't survive his injuries and is dead."
The demonstrators, protesting against a delay in holding local elections in the West African country, erected makeshift barricades in Labe, several hundred kilometers northeast of Conakry, and threw rocks at police who responded with tear gas.
"It is currently really tense in Labe," Naite said, adding that the authorities were trying to calm the situation.
Hundreds of people also marched in the capital Conakry as well as the cities of Kindia and Dabola as part of a nationwide protest, considered illegal by the government, against the timing of elections.
The opposition accuses the government of breaking a promise it made in 2013 to hold a long-delayed local ballot before a presidential vote due in October this year.
President Alpha Conde told journalists during a visit to Paris on Wednesday that there were no plans to change the electoral calendar.
In Conakry's suburb of Bambeto, residents said they heard a spurt of gunfire at noon, without specifying the origin.
A local radio station Lynx FM said that several people with bullet injuries had been brought into a local clinic in the capital, although this could not be independently verified.
"Since this morning, we are trying to stop protesters from gathering. Whenever we see a group we try to disperse them rapidly," said a police officer, requesting anonymity. He said he was not aware of reports of gunfire.
Protests earlier this month turned violent and the opposition accuses security forces of firing live rounds at protesters, wounding several people. The government denies this.
Presidential and legislative elections since 2010, when Guinea emerged from decades of military rule, have been marred by violent protests, with parties divided along ethnic lines.
Members of the opposition said on Thursday that police forces were surrounding the houses of their leaders to prevent them from participating in the protest.
"They blocked the two exits with pick-up trucks and a van with water cannons. Clearly, they don't want leaders to get out and are trying to control the protest," said Souleymane Tianguel Bah, spokesman for the UFDG party.
Sidya Toure, former prime minister and now a member of the opposition, said security forces were also outside his home.
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In previous seasons, K-State developed an effective scouting routine leading up to its NCAA Tournament opener. Video and other information on an opponent began flowing.
But the Wildcats will prepare differently this time. On top of adjusting to the approach of a new coaching staff, they will have to spend the next two days planning for multiple opponents before locking in on either La Salle or Boise State on Thursday in Kansas City.
Scouting for two teams instead of one will be a challenge. Coaches will come up with two game plans, and the staff will provide players with twice as much video. To help ease the process, Bruce Weber said four coaches will help gather information instead of the usual three.
Some will argue preparing for multiple opponents puts K-State at a disadvantage compared to other highly seeded teams. Three other teams in the field of 68 have to deal with the same time crunch and challenge of facing a team that has already won a game in the tournament.
Boise State averages more than 73 points behind Anthony Drmic (17.3 points) and Derrick Marks (16.3). The Broncos won nine games in the Mountain West Conference — which this season has college basketball’s top conference RPI — and beat Creighton on the road. They are not easy to prepare for.
Neither is La Salle, which won 11 games in the Atlantic 10 behind dynamic guards Ramon Galloway and Tyreek Duren. The Explorers beat Butler and VCU this season.
Of course, others will say it is an advantage. Sure, K-State doesn’t know who it will play on Friday, but La Salle and Boise State aren’t even thinking about the Wildcats yet.
A live game, especially in the NCAA Tournament, can often reveal more about a team than what can be found from replays of regular-season games.
Kansas State’s basketball game against current No. 1 Gonzaga next season at Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita will be Dec. 21, the schools announced Monday. It’s a return trip to Kansas after Gonzaga’s victory in a neutral-court game in Seattle this season.
K-State season-ticket holders and Ahearn Fund members will have first opportunities to purchase tickets, with a public sale beginning at 10 a.m. Sept. 13 through selectaseat.com or by calling 855-755-7328. Tickets will range between $12 and $200, and K-State students can purchase $10 student tickets in the fall.
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Initiated by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Nathan Twining and Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Arleigh Burke, and then presided over by General Thomas Power, Director of the Joint Strategic Target Planning Staff (1960-1964), SIOP-62 mapped out a synchronized nuclear attack by the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Army combining strategic bombers, Polaris submarine-launched missiles and Atlas ICBMs in an ‘alert’ force of over 1,706 nuclear weapons and a ‘full’ force of over 3,240 nuclear weapons delivered to 1,060 targets in the Soviet Union, China and allied states. In this Plan there was little or no distinction made between Communist states that were at war with the United States and those that were not. Some sites (Designated Ground Zeroes – DGZs) would be struck by two or more weapons, and included both military installations and urban-industrial areas. The alert force would target 199 cities and the full force would target 295.2 The planners estimated that the total human deaths from such an attack would be 108 million in the Soviet Union and 104 million in the PRC as well as several million in satellite states,3 while Kaplan estimated that 175 million Russians and Chinese would be killed by the ‘alert’ force and 285 million would be killed by a ‘full’ force, and an additional 40 million more injured.4 To make such threats credible, the Departments of Defense (DoD) and Energy (DoE) and the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) conducted visible tests of new nuclear weapons in various atmospheric conditions in a twenty test series between 1946 and 1963. Even after the limited test ban treaty was adopted, they continued with underground tests.
General Thomas Power presided over the creation of SIOP-62 as Commander in Chief, Strategic Air Command (1957–1964) and Director, Joint Strategic Target Planning Staff (1960–1964).
As nuclear intimidation continued, and as other nations sought to gain ‘parity’, the global nuclear industry grew. It was clearly understood in these early decades that the dual-use of nuclear materials in nuclear energy generation and nuclear weapons served to establish and maintain national influence in the international arena. Since 1945, the supply and procurement of uranium together with coal (for steel production) has been a good indicator of a nation’s capacity to both rapidly increase its energy production with the potential to produce munitions and, for those states already with the capacity, to produce and enhance a nuclear weapons arsenal. High-energy power generation was an index of a nation’s war-making potential underlining the link between mining and militarisation.
In the following I seek to explain why and how the Australian government in 2014 has concluded a uranium trade deal with India that is in breach of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by tracing the development of a nuclear nexus between India, Australia, Japan and the United States. Just as it was in the early cold war, this trade in nuclear materials is informed by interlocking and mutually reinforcing economic and geostrategic interests that have long undermined international disarmament initiatives. I argue that changing climatic conditions caused by emissions intensive energy production, however, demand a fundamental re-thinking of this paradigm.
Of the 67 reactors under construction globally as of July 2014, at least 49 were experiencing delays and eight had been under construction for 20 or more years. China too, having planned before 2011 to replace heavy carbon emitting coal-fired power stations with nuclear power stations, stalled and re-assessed its position after 3.11.8 For the most part, China (along with the US, India and Germany) has boosted its renewable electricity generating capacity so that by 2013, it produced through wind, solar and hydro power over 1000 terawatt hours – the equivalent of the total power generation of France and Germany.9 In Japan, nearly four years after the Fukushima Daiichi meltdowns, 46 other nuclear reactors remain shut down. The Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) approved the restart of two reactors in Sendai, Kyushu on 10 September 2014 and Mayoral consent was secured in October.
Until 2014, along with China, Japan has also seen a boom in mostly solar and wind electricity generation. But this has been stalled by utilities who have refused to take an influx of renewable power into the grid or to reduce electricity prices.10 With fewer nuclear plants scheduled for construction around the world than for shutdown, however, the nuclear industry faces the likely prospect of contraction11 and replacement by rapidly advancing renewable energy options, including solar, wind, tidal, hydro and possibly geothermal power over the longer term.
New mining leases were approved in Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales, and Queensland Premier Campbell Newman broke his electoral commitment not to permit uranium mining by inviting uranium mining companies to commence exploration operations. The new (Queensland) Mineral and Energy Resources (Common Provisions) Bill 2014, for example, passed on 9 September 2014 authorizes a Coordinator General to overrule community objection rights to ‘State significant projects’ including coal, bauxite and uranium mines, or to limit them to concerns unrelated to environmental protection.13 This Act gives virtual immunity to large companies exploring for uranium deposits in the Mitchell and Alice River basins in Cape York and the Gulf country. Encouraged by these positive signs, along with other Japanese, Chinese and Indian investors in uranium projects in Australia, the major French energy corporation Areva recently bought a 51 percent share in a joint venture with Australian uranium miner Toro Energy for exploration in the Wiso Basin in Northern Territory.14 In other words, federal and state governments in Australia have been approving exploration licenses and the opening of uranium mines at a time when the global nuclear and uranium industry was marked by decline and exit.
While some of the larger corporations chose to wait for uranium demand to rise, many in the Australian uranium mining industry scrambled to reprioritise, turning to the newly emerging market of nation-states tipped for rapid economic expansion. India attracted attention due to its high-growth economic potential, geostrategic positioning and nuclear ambitions. As then Prime Minister Howard had done in 2007, ‘energy starved’ India’s ‘power crisis’ is again being widely portrayed in desperate terms,15 while the solutions are presented as economic expansion and greater energy consumption by a growing middle class.16 In addition to coal exports, Australian politicians, in consultation with business representatives in the uranium and minerals sector, have framed the push for uranium trade with India as a ‘moral duty’ and ‘humanitarian responsibility’ to improve living standards of India’s impoverished people.
Over the nearly four years since the Fukushima disaster, the Japanese government and corporations have actively courted more than 20 countries for the purchase of Japan’s nuclear technologies. Agreements had been reached with Jordan, Vietnam, South Korea and Russia under the Kan and Noda Democratic Party Japan (DPJ) governments, and the export of nuclear technology remained central to the Abe government’s economic plans. Two more nuclear technology agreements with Turkey and the United Arab Emirates have since been reached,19 and six more are under consideration – with India, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh. Despite the continuing negative effects of ongoing radioactive contamination dispersal from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, the Abe government remains intent both on nuclear startups in Japan and on promoting its exports of nuclear technology to other countries.
A similar initiative followed on 5 September 2014, when Abbott and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed the Australia-India Nuclear Cooperation Agreement in New Delhi. It was the culmination of the efforts initiated by the Howard government in 2006,22 carried forward by the Gillard government in 2011–2012.
After India’s ‘Smiling Buddha’ Pokhran-I nuclear tests in May 1974, when the Indian government declared that it intended to harness nuclear energy to manufacture nuclear weapons, the Australian government (and many other countries including the US) placed a ban on exporting uranium to it (France and Russia continued to sporadically export uranium under a safety clause). India had built its clandestine nuclear weapons program using imported Canadian reactors.
Since Nehru, India has justified its indigenous development of civil and military nuclear capacity and fuel and its refusal to ratify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by pointing to the nuclear weapons held by existing nuclear weapons states. It has argued that the NPT is a flawed agreement that reflects the hypocrisy of the nuclear weapons states in refusing to seriously engage in disarmament while expecting non-nuclear weapons states to abstain from possession. In 1975, partially in response to the Indian tests of the previous year, the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) initially comprising seven nations (United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, Japan, France, Canada, West Germany) was formed to prevent the diversion of nuclear materials used for commercial and peaceful purposes for the production of nuclear weapons. NSG members were obliged to cease trade with governments that did not submit to international inspection. India and Pakistan were included. Despite the bans, India went ahead to conduct its Pokhran II nuclear tests in May 1998. These were followed by Pakistan’s tests two weeks later. UN Security Council Resolution 1172 of June 199823 expressed grave concern and demanded that both countries foreswear further tests and abandon their nuclear weapon ambitions.
expressed grave concern and demanded that both countries foreswear further tests and abandon their nuclear weapon ambitions.
Despite the resolution’s unanimous adoption and threat of sanctions, the turning point was when the George W. Bush administration (2001-2009) chose to prioritize U.S. bilateral relations with India over any unified front to counter nuclear proliferation. The US–India energy agreement of July 2005 opened the way for other states, such as Australia, to engage bilaterally with India.
Meanwhile in October 2008, the Singh government overcame stiff opposition in parliament to secure national and international backing for the signing of the US–India ‘1-2-3’ Nuclear Cooperation Agreement.This Agreement stipulated that India would open its civilian nuclear facilities to inspection by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and delineate its civil and military facilities so as to ensure US-origin fuel would not be used for military purposes. In return the US would supply nuclear fuel and nuclear technologies (six reactors) and gain greater access to the Indian nuclear market.
As unanimous approval from the 48 states of the NSG was also required, the US and India lobbied hard and secured an unprecedented waiver of NSG export guidelines so as to permit nuclear commerce with India despite its non-NPT signatory status. Having granted the exception, several NSG members then negotiated bilateral nuclear accords with India (including France, United Kingdom, South Korea, Canada and Kazakhstan). In 2008 the Singh government purchased 300 MT of uranium ore concentrate from Areva of France, in 2009 2000 MT of uranium oxide pellets and 58 MT of enriched uranium dioxide from JSC Tvel/Russia, also in 2009 2100 MT of uranium dioxide concentrate from NAC/Kazakhstan and in 2013 2000 MT of uranium ore concentrate from NMMC Uzbekistan.27 While details are yet to be finalised, the deal with Australia in 2014 would secure for India a steady, reliable, high-grade uranium supply from the world’s largest known uranium deposits (its uranium resources are about 28 percent of the world total).
While details are yet to be finalised, the deal with Australia in 2014 would secure for India a steady, reliable, high-grade uranium supply from the world’s largest known uranium deposits (its uranium resources are about 28 percent of the world total).
In November 2010, in a joint statement signed by US President Obama and Indian PM Singh, it was agreed that negotiations would begin between Nuclear Power Corporation India Ltd (NPCIL) and US nuclear energy companies in return for implementing India’s full membership of the NSG in a ‘phased manner’. India agreed to accommodate the demands of General Electric and Westinghouse, which sought strict adherence to the CSC31 by diluting the CLNDA to reduce both suppliers’ liability and the time period for exercising right of recourse in the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Rules 2011.32 The US-India Business Council, PM Modi and industry executives from the Nuclear Power Company of India Ltd. (NPCIL) also devised an insurance package to indemnify the American suppliers in the event of a nuclear accident for the maximum liability amount stipulated in the CLNDA (INR 1500 Crore/$250 million).33 This was to encourage US/Japan companies (among others) to collaborate in building new nuclear reactors to allow India to ‘achieve its full blown potential’.34 In short, India would take as close to full liability for nuclear accidents as possible in return for receiving the benefits of NPT and NSG membership without the full obligations expected of its members. In doing so, the integrity of the NPT was further compromised.
Given that Australia’s uranium mining and export accounts for less than 1 percent of its hundred billion dollar mineral export business (iron ore, bauxite, coal, copper, nickel etc),36 however, these decisions by Australian leaders risked significant political capital over what has been a highly contentious issue in Australia’s recent political history.
the NPT non-nuclear-weapon states agree never to acquire nuclear weapons in exchange for which the NPT nuclear-weapon states agree to share the benefits of peaceful nuclear technology and to pursue nuclear disarmament aimed at the ultimate elimination of their nuclear arsenals.
Nuclear weapons states have had the primary responsibility to ensure disarmament of their own arsenals so as to prevent nuclear non-proliferation among other states. The export controls regime of the NSG and enhanced verification measures of IAEA (International Atomic Energy Association) Additional Protocols are ostensibly to end every possible means to acquire nuclear weapons. While Article Four of the NPT provides ‘inalienable rights to every non-nuclear weapon state’ to pursue nuclear energy for power generation, India is neither a member of the NPT nor a Non-Nuclear Weapon State and there is no provision in the NPT which permits for signatories to form nuclear cooperation agreements with Non-NPT states.
India quite rightly has pointed out the hypocritical approach of the nuclear weapons states in approaching the NPT regime. As the Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee stated in 2007, India was not an NPT signatory because it considers the regime to be not one of ‘universal, non-discriminatory verification and treatment’.37 In the same statement, Minister Mukherjee also claimed that India had an ‘impeccable record on non-proliferation… [was] a leading advocate of the elimination of all nuclear weapons… [and was an adherent] to the values of peace and non-violence’. India’s ‘impeccable track-record on non-proliferation’ was a catch phrase coined by President Bush in 2005,38 and reiterated by both PM Modi and PM Abbott in 2014.
Treating India as an exceptional case and a de facto nuclear weapons state makes even more conspicuous the selective imposition of sanctions or favour upon other non-NPT signatory nuclear weapons states such as Pakistan and Israel, or NPT signatory non-nuclear weapons states such as Iran.39 But the self-interested and strategically motivated application of the NPT was not new, nor was it limited to the US and its allies. The Soviet Union supplied China with the necessary technologies and skills to develop its own nuclear weapons capabilities, as China then supplied Pakistan. In turn, Pakistan also supplied other states that aspire to obtain nuclear capabilities. All were in a chain reaction, however, to U.S. threats to China and ultimately to the Soviet Union, in the early decades of the Cold War. While it is debatable that uranium and nuclear technology supply to India by others might serve to deter contemporary Chinese or Pakistani nuclear aggression, it has not served to prevent Indian conflicts with either of those two nations in the past. In any case, the use of nuclear trade as a strategic instrument does not ensure greater security or stability of the international community broadly defined, and this sort of leverage is not a valid use of the NPT.
So despite PM Abbott’s assurances that ‘suitable safeguards’ were in place to guarantee that Australian uranium would be used for ‘peaceful purposes’ and for ‘civilian use only’, as the former Director General of the Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office John Carlson points out, the Agreement departs from two principles of Australia’s 1987 Safeguards Act (section 51):40 the acquirement of ‘consent to reprocessing’ from the Australian government prior to the separation of plutonium from spent fuel; and the ‘right of return’ of nuclear materials supplied in the event of a breach of the agreement.41 Instead, the Agreement defers to the US-India nuclear cooperation agreement in which India would reprocess in facilities built with the assistance of US companies, and leaves open the question of how separated plutonium would be used or how arbitration would apply to settle disputes.
Ten of India’s twenty nuclear facilities are beyond the regulatory authority of the IAEA and India only selectively recognises IAEA safeguards for specific foreign supplied reactors and facilities. India also refuses to submit to suppliers inventory reports and accounting processes for nuclear material flowing through the nuclear cycle. As the IAEA is not able to fully inspect India’s dual-purpose (civilian and military) indigenous reactors and facilities for reprocessing, enrichment, retransfers to third countries, research and development or the production of tritium (used as a trigger for weapons), India is not fully accountable to either the IAEA or the supplier nation with which it has a bilateral agreement with in-built IAEA norms.
So even if India adheres to Australia’s requirements that its uranium be used solely to supply civil nuclear reactors for electricity generation that may be inspected by IAEA as per the nuclear safeguards agreement, Australia’s (or any other NPT members’) uranium export to India effectively supplements or liberates limited supplies of Indian uranium for military uses.42 Nor could, in the unlikely discovery of the ‘misallocation’ of some Australian origin uranium toward military use, the IAEA force compliance. In fact, whether or not India accounts for the flows of Australian material in its nuclear fuel cycle, it is impossible to verify whether it has actually adhered to the safeguards.
Australian Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson, Adani group founder Gautam Adani, Queensland Premier Campbell Newman in India in 2012.
As has been recommended by the United Nations (UN), World Health Organisation (WHO), International Energy Agency (IEA), Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC), and recognised by the World Bank and the European Investment Bank, the rapid phase out of coal-fired power stations is essential if the world is to meet the now seemingly optimistic carbon emissions reductions necessary to keep planetary warming below 2 percent of pre-industrialisation levels.46 While two hundred licenses for coal-fired power stations have been revoked by the Supreme Court of India recently, many Indian overseas coal projects are still underway.
There are a number of flaws underpinning the logic of this activity between political leaders and nuclear industry executives. PM Abbott insisted at the time of signing the nuclear deal with India that the Agreement would be safe. In fact, the Abbott government has committed to selling uranium to an ambitious nation that barely conceals its intentions to expand its nuclear weapons arsenal and has refused to become a full signatory to the NPT and, along with the US, China and Pakistan, has not ratified the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).
Prime Minister Modi is a pro-business politician and hardliner on Pakistan and Muslim populations in India and favours a security policy based on nuclear deterrence. The BJP holds a commanding majority in the lower house of Parliament. There is little reason to assume that Indian relations with Pakistan – or indeed with China – will soften by furnishing India with greater means to project its military power in the region. The surge of fundamentalist and jingoist forces in South Asia and rising military budgets and tensions between India and Pakistan on the one hand and China and the US, Japan and its allies on the other, aggravate the security situation in the region. Further, India has been waging an on-going long-term campaign against an insurgency within its borders, and it cannot guarantee against theft of nuclear-related materials.
Fourth, the option of nuclear power as the ‘clean’ alternative is nothing of the sort. Although the fission operation of nuclear power stations may be ‘cleaner’ than coal-fired power stations in terms of carbon emissions, and although the heat from fission may produce more energy and less waste per volume of uranium than coal, many problems remain unresolved. These include the safe storage of long-lived nuclear waste, long build time of reactors in proportion to rapidly accelerating effects of climate change, enormous financial costs, use and contamination of vital resources required across the nuclear cycle from mining to waste production (including water and fossil fuels),55centralised monopolisation of power management necessitated by nuclear power generation, excess heating of the atmosphere through the discharge of excess heat through water and air, danger to ecologies downwind or downstream from venting while refueling reactors, and increased potential for large-scale and long-term damage from accidents.
Given the advances of wind, solar, tidal and geothermal energy production which have become cheaper and more productive, as field-tested in China, Germany,56 Spain and other countries, and the abundance of these sources of energy in countries like Australia, the myth of base-load power is less sustainable than it was in the heady renaissance days. India’s pitch to rapidly increase economic growth has been embraced by the transnational nuclear industry as it represents an opportunity to expand the nuclear industry, and an opportunity to diversify from reliance on the Chinese market. But when typical cost-benefit analyses are extended to include the actual costs of the above-mentioned scenarios (nuclear weapons exchange, public health effects from industrial pollution from uranium mining and nuclear reactors, nuclear reactor disasters, nuclear waste storage, renewable energy alternatives), in an already fragile ecology in India, India’s nuclear energy plan reflects neither deep commitment to climate change mitigation nor serious concern for India’s impoverished populations.
Why does the Australian, Indian, the United States and Japanese governments (among others) and their affiliated transnational corporations, continue to accelerate nuclear related operations despite these significant obstacles?
It is unlikely that the Japan-India Nuclear Cooperation Agreement went unsigned because of any putative scruple Japan may have about selling nuclear technologies to India as a non-NPT nuclear weapons state. As the Modi and NPCIL accommodation of American supplier demands demonstrates, the liability clause can be flexible. It remains unlikely, however, that India will consent to opening all of its reactors for inspection.60 Rather, it is likely that Japan is awaiting an American executive decision on the liability issue and the possible inclusion of India into the NPT as a nuclear weapons state, since prior agreement would appear to abrogate Japan’s NPT obligations.
That PM Modi reasserted India’s customary ‘no first use’ policy does not mean that he does not intend to stockpile and bolster India’s nuclear arsenal. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) estimates that India possesses 90 to 110 nuclear weapons.61 In June 2014, the IHS (Information Handling Service) Jane’s military research group identified what they believe to be a new uranium hexafluoride (enrichment) facility at the Indian Rare Metals Plant near Mysore. As with its other military plants, this plant is not within IAEA safeguards. Estimated to be operational by mid-2015, it would produce roughly double the amount of enriched fuel (160 kilos a year enriched to 90 percent purity) required for India’s ballistic missile nuclear submarine fleet.62 The IHS analysts surmise that the surplus could be used for thermonuclear weapons (mixing enriched uranium and plutonium stockpiles).63 It could also be used to fuel nuclear submarines, space satellites, tactical and intermediate ballistic missiles, and multiple warhead Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (Agni V ICBM MIRVs) with the ability to reach cities in China and Pakistan. India joins the US, Russia, UK, France and China in possessing the ICBM with MIRV, leaving Pakistan further behind in terms of weapons parity, particularly in navy, air and ground forces, and missile capabilities.64 As India seeks to rival China, it could further destabilize relations with Pakistan by intensifying the ongoing arms race between the two. Regional tensions could be further exacerbated by Pakistan’s border skirmishes with Afghanistan and Iran over its support of the Taliban in Afghanistan.65 Along with increasing tensions involving US-Japan-India and China, this is precisely the scenario that NPT members have tried to avoid by subscribing to IAEA safeguards.
Since the late 1950s, there have been elements in the Japanese government (led by Abe’s grandfather and former Prime Minister Kishi Nobusuke) who have advocated the procurement of tactical nuclear weapons as an entitlement under the nation’s right to self-defence as stipulated in the UN Charter. Although the US has long discouraged Japan’s nuclear weaponisation with assurances of extended nuclear deterrence, in 2003 US Vice-President Cheney stated that Japan’s possession of nuclear weapons could be tenable if it were aligned to US strategic deterrence policy.68 As an NPT signatory, Japan has accumulated the fourth largest stockpile of ‘civilian’ plutonium, the largest stockpile of any non-nuclear weapons state.69 Despite reprocessing programs having been closed down by many other countries, Japan claims that its significant nuclear reprocessing and fuel fabrication program is for ‘energy autonomy’ by which it means ‘closing the nuclear fuel cycle’. This relies upon the ability to separate plutonium from spent fuel and reprocess and fabricate it ‘upwards’ so as to produce more plutonium than is consumed, thereby facilitating an endless loop of fuel production and consumption. In this scenario, the Japanese government regards spent nuclear fuel and stockpiled plutonium as an ‘asset’ rather than a ‘debt’.
This ability should not be understood as solely for the reduction of reliance on foreign fuel imports or even of nuclear waste. In 2009, Ernest J. Moniz, an MIT professor and United States Secretary of Energy in 2014, admitted that uranium, once thought to be scarce, was now so abundant as to raise doubt over the necessity for nuclear fuel reprocessing.70 As of March 2011, despite the recommendations by the Japan Atomic Energy Commission and the Science Council of Japan of both direct disposal and limited surface storage of spent nuclear fuel in dry casks over fuel pool storage and reprocessing, the Japanese government would not rule out the reprocessing option. If the closed fuel cycle ever did eventuate, it would negate Japan’s dependence on the import of vital energy resources (uranium, oil, natural gas) so as to achieve ‘energy autonomy’. This would drastically reduce fuel costs and would also reduce vulnerability to sanctions should Japan breach the NPT (or other international agreements) in its decision to ‘go nuclear’.
Japan’s long-term investment in co-developing this high-level technical capability has made it the second most powerful missile power in the world, and the only nation outside the US with both low and upper-tier defences reputedly capable of intercepting missiles beyond the Earth’s atmosphere.72 Given this long-term commitment, it was not surprising that the Abe government in 2013 decided to declare the constitutional right to participate in ‘collective security’ operations with the US and other allies.
This technology, and Japan’s ambiguous intentions concerning nuclear and space weaponisation, means that the US and Japan, in collaboration with partners such as Australia and India (in sea-going operations in particular), could potentially integrate not only their BMD systems but also their nuclearized capabilities. As South Korea and Taiwan have also expressed interest in reprocessing their spent nuclear fuel (as have other states such as Saudi Arabia), these developments carry strong potential for proliferation.
One of the major implications of this distributed form of ‘self-defence’ is that US Pacific Command would further extend the pre-emptive strike capacity of its global nuclear strike force. With Japan’s recent release of space assets for military use (reconnaissance, communications, navigation, early warning) in collaboration with the US, this further augments the current period of US ‘nuclear primacy’ and a return to the conditions prior to 1963 when the Soviets had developed long-range bombers to deliver their nuclear payloads over US territory. Nuclear primacy transcends the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction in its ability to win a nuclear war, which the US is proposing to do by eliminating retaliatory capability with a single massive attack called ‘Prompt Global Strike’.
Under the Australia–India uranium trade agreement, India will use Australian yellow cake to diversify its nuclear program. If and when the Japan–India Nuclear Cooperation Agreement is concluded, it will supply the nuclear technology India requires to build its industrial capacity and indirectly enhance its nuclear arsenal. Negotiated almost simultaneously and in coordination, both of these Agreements, together with and following the US–India nuclear agreement, tacitly legitimise India’s nuclear status and assist in its ambitions for greater international influence. Australia and Japan, both NPT and NSG members, have become complicit in India’s nuclear weapons program and partially responsible for increasing the risk of nuclear accident in India, and for potentially aggravating nuclear rivalry in Asia.
India claims to need more electricity for domestic and industrial growth as well as to lift a significant population out of poverty. Yet there are many factors which create the conditions for the advance of India’s poor, just as there are many forms of alternative energy generation beyond nuclear and coal which would be safer, more reliable and powerful if given comparable investment and with smart power grid distribution networks.76 To the extent that governments and corporations continue to invest in nuclear power construction and reprocessing as a source of ‘renewable energy’, they diminish the potential to stem the destructive and exponentially increasing effects of climate change.77 China, Germany, the United States, India and even Japan are presently leading the world in investing in renewable energy technology. Yet, with the exception of Germany, this is being done in parallel with plans to expand nuclear power production.
The ongoing contamination from radiation dispersed from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant came, in part, from Australian uranium.78 When the benefits of uranium trade are weighed against the potential and actual costs and damages from uranium mining, the actual risks of nuclear reactor accidents and mismanagement, the decline in costs and advances in renewable technologies, potential nuclear weapons use (broadly defined) and proliferation, and the steady production of nuclear waste, it becomes clear that state-corporate policies to expand the industry are ill-conceived.
In 2014, as in 1945 and throughout the intervening decades, uranium mining, nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons remain ineluctably tied to the formation of a global power structure of nation-states and transnational corporations and instrumental in their overarching ambitions.
Adam Broinowski is an ARC postdoctoral research fellow at the School of Pacific and Asian History, College of Asia and the Pacific, The Australian National University. His recent work includes a chapter, ‘Sovereign Power Ambition and the Realities of the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster’ in Nadesan/Boys/McKillop/Wilcox (eds.), Fukushima: Dispossession or Denuclearization?, The Dispossesion Publishing Group, 2014, and a forthcoming article, ‘Conflicting Immunities: Priorities of Life and Sovereignty amid the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster’, European Journal of Contemporary Japanese Studies, December 2014. His book, Cultural Responses to Occupation in Japan: The Performing Body during and after the Cold War is forthcoming in 2015.
Recommended citation: Adam Broinowski, “Undermining Nuclear Non-Proliferation: Energy and Security Politics in the Australia–India–Japan–U.S. Nuclear Nexus,” The Asia-Pacific Journal, Vol. 12, Issue 46, No. 2, November 1, 2014.
1 R. A. Paulsen, The Role of Nuclear Weapons in the Post-Cold War Era, Maxwell Airforce Base: Alabama Air University Press, 1994, pp. 1–11.
2 William Burr (ed.), ‘The Creation of SioP-62: More Evidence of the Origins of Overkill’, National Security Archive Electronic Briefing book No. 130, 13 July 2004.
3 Government of United States of America, Joint Chiefs of Staff, ‘Berlin Contingency Planning’, June 1961, National Security Archives.
4 F. Kaplan, The Wizards of Armageddon, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1983, p. 269. To what extent they calculated the ‘bonus kills’, as General LeMay put it, from radiation exposure is unclear, but it was likely a very conservative estimate.
5 For example, Uranerz Energy Corporation announced a net loss in the second quarter of 2013. See, ‘Uranerz Records Q2 Net Loss of $4.45 million’, 11 August 2014.
6 See Suzuki Tatsujiro in Mycle Schnyder and Anthony Froggat (eds.), World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2014, 18 August 2014, pp. 4, 76, 155; Aaron Sheldrick, ‘Global nuclear power contribution falls to lowest since 1980s’,Reuters, 29 July 2014; Jim Green, ‘Uranium – how low can it go’, Business Spectator, 29 May 2014.
7 Schneider and Froggatt, ‘Executive summary and conclusions’, World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2013, July.
8 David von Hippel, James H. Williams, ‘Nuclear safety concers with China’s growing reactor fleet’, NAPSNet Policy Forum, 28 October 2014.
9 John Mathews and Hao Tan, ‘China shows there is more to renewable energy than fighting climate change’, The Conversation, 11 September 2014.
10 Daniel Cusick, ‘Power companies in Japan move to restrict solar’, Scientific American, 2 October 2014.
11 Aaron Sheldrick, ‘Global nuclear power contribution falls to lowest since 1980s’, Reuters, 29 July 2014.
12 Paddy Manning, ‘Producers bullish on Japanese demand’, Sydney Morning Herald, 18 December 2012.
13 Andrew Picone, ‘Mining companies now have more rights than the community in Newman’s Queensland’, SBS News, 1 October 14. Between 2013–14 and 2017–18 Australia’s uranium production is projected to increase by 32 per cent to total 9590 tonnes, as supported by the Alliance Resources’ Four Mile mine in South Australia, ore extraction at Ranger uranium mine and Toro Energy’s Wiluna mine in Western Australia. Other additional mining operations such as Cameco’s Kintyre and Yeelirrie projects as well as potential projects in Queensland are not projected to begin until 2017–18. Government of Australia, BREE, Resources and Energy Quarterly, October 2013, p. 26.
14 ‘Toro signs NT deal with AREVA’, The West Australian, 29 September 2014.
15 The World Bank estimates that nearly 400 million Indians have no access to electricity. World Bank, ‘Energy’.
16 At the recent opening of a coal mine, Prime Minister Abbott was quoted as declaring ‘Coal is good for humanity, coal is good for prosperity, coal is an essential part of our economic future, here in Australia, and right around the world.’ Editors, ‘Coal is good for humanity’, The Australian, 15 October 2014.
17 ‘Nuclear power in the USA’, World Nuclear Report, 23 October 2014.
18 Mitsubishi CEO Kojima Yorihiko quoted by Rick Wallace, ‘ Billions to flow from Shinzo Abe visit, says Mitsubishi chairman’, The Australian , 7 July 2014.
19 Editor, ‘Exports that defy reason’, Japan Times, 20 April 2014.
20 The Defense Ministry of the Abe government has sought a 3.5 percent increase to ¥5.05 trillion for the fiscal year of 2015, an unprecedented military budget for the nation. Takenaka Kiyoshi, Reuters, 29 August 2014.
21 P. Kallender-Umezu, ‘Japan Quietly Builds Limited Counter-A2/AD Capabilities’, 17 September 2013, Defense News.
22 The Howard government proposed the expansion of uranium mining and uranium exports, establishment of a uranium enrichment industry, and construction of 25 power reactors. Others in Australia propose 20 nuclear by 2050. See Government of Australia, Prime Minister and Cabinet, 29 December 2006, ‘Uranium mining, processing and nuclear energy – opportunities for Australia’.
23 United Nations, UN Security Council Resolution 1172.
24 For more discussion on this, see C. Rovere and K. Robertson, ‘Australia’s Uranium and India: Linking Exports to CTBT Ratification’, Security Challenges, Vol. 9, No. 1 (2013), pp. 51–61.
25 ‘China wants Australia’s uranium’, ABC, 17 October 2005.
26 ‘Reliance Arm paid $3.45 million to UXA for uranium exploration’, The Hindu Business Line, 28 May 2008.
27 Later, it was admitted that Indian projections are overly ambitious, and they would scale down from 20,000 MWe of new nuclear capacity to 11,080 MWe by the year 2020.
29 IAEA, Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, International Atomic Energy Agency.
30 Government of India, ‘The Civil Liability For Nuclear Damage Act’, 2010.
31 Editors, ‘U.S.-India Business Council Statement on Nuclear Liability Law’, Reuters, 30 August 2010.
32 Government of India, ‘Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Rules 2011’.
33 Indrani Bagchi, ‘India gives US insurance plan for nuclear plants’, The Times of India, 13 March 2014; Kapil Patil, ‘Untying the Civil Nuclear Liability Knot in the Indo-US Nuclear Deal’, Nautilus Institute, 30 September 2014.
34 Kapil Patil, ‘Untying the civil nuclear liability knot in the Indo-US nuclear deal’, NAPSnet policy forum, 30 September 2014.
35 Paul Meyer, ‘India and the meltdown of Canada’s nuclear non-proliferation policy: Ottawa abandons principled position for greater access to India’s economy’, Reuters.
36 Editors, ‘Yellow cake fever: Exposing the Uranium industry’s economic myths’, Australian Conservation Foundation, April 2013, p. 27.
37 Editors, ‘India dismisses NPT as ‘flawed’ treaty’, The Times of India, 23 March 2007.
38 Demetri Sevastopulo, Caroline Daniel, Jo Johnson, ‘India nuclear deal takes Congress by surprise’, Financial Times, 19 July 2005.
39 Yusra Mushtaq, ‘A Blatant Violation Of NPT’, 26 September 2014, Eurasia Review. See also, IAEA, Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, ‘IAEA Topic 2: The Implementation of the NPT for the Non-Supporters of this Treaty’.
40 Government of Australia, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, ‘Australia’s uranium export policy’.
41 John Carlson, ‘Is the Abbott Government abandoning Australia’s nuclear safeguards standards for India?’, The Interpreter, 1 October 2014 (part 1) and (part 2).
42 K. Subrahmanyam, ‘India and the nuclear deal’, The Times of India, 12 December 2005.
43 Crispin Rovere, ‘Australia–India nuclear treaty: a non-proliferation disaster’, Australian Strategic Policy Institute, 14 October 2014.
44 Comprising six open-cut pits and five underground mines, the Carmichael mine will cover an area seven times that of Sydney Harbour. Despite warnings from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and UNESCO that this will place it ‘in danger’, plans to dredge and dump about 3 million cubic metres of the Reef into a wetlands sanctuary to make way for port expansions for 480 additional ships to access 330 million tonnes of coal per year from this mega-mine will use 12 billion litres of fresh water per year and will affect the habitat of humpback whales, sea turtles and dugongs. With 130 million tonnes of carbon dioxide produced every year for ninety years, this will cancel out the Queensland Direct Action target of 131 million tonnes of carbon dioxide reduction. Adani Enterprises has a dubious track record including illegal large-scale exports of iron ore at its port and numerous cases of environmental pollution. It has also been a significant supporter of the Bharatiya Janta Party. Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Citi, Morgan Stanley and possible JP Morgan Chase and Goldman Sachs have refused to fund the project while the ‘big four’ Australian banks seem to be giving their approval. India is the third largest producer, consumer and importer of coal in the world and the fourth largest energy consumer in the world. See, Mary McCarthy, ‘Darwin and Adelaide likely export hubs for Queensland uranium’, ABC Rural; Ben Pearson, ‘ Carmichael coal mine impacts will be felt for generations,’ ABC Environment , 28Jul2014, William Rollo, ‘Carmichael Coal and Rail Project: Queensland mine gets Federal Government approval’, ABC News, 29 July 2014; Candace Dunn, ‘India falls back on imported fossil fuels’, Business Spectator, 15 August 2014.
45 ‘Indian activists take on Adani coal mine’, Geelong Advertiser, 9 October 2014; ‘Ramping up against coal’, Beyond Zero Emissions, September – August 2012.
46 In support of the claim for the rapid shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy and energy savings, the United Nations’ Secretary General Ban Ki-moon stated ‘We need to limit global temperature rise within 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. This is what the international community has recognised as the upper limit of safety. Beyond 2 degrees, the consequences will be unpredictable, highly dangerous and perhaps irreversible’. See, United Nations, ‘Secretary-General’s remarks at Climate Leaders Summit’, 11 April 2014. It is estimated that at least two thirds of proven fossil fuel reserves must stay in the ground and that carbon utilities and infrastructure must be developed beyond 2017 as 80 percent of cumulative emissions allowable between 2010 and 2035 are already locked into existing power plants, factories, buildings and services. In addition this will result in significant positive in health effects, job production, biodiversity conservation, energy independence and stronger sovereignty and resilience. Although several countries have moved to end public finance for coal and other fossil fuels, Australia has yet to do so in a significant manner. See WHO – 7 million premature deaths linked to air pollution and Climate Change – IPCC Response Strategies.
47 Editors, ‘A new engagement: The Indo-Australian nuclear deal signals a paradigm shift in the quality of the relationship between the two nations’, The Hindu Business Line, 8 September 2014.
48 Neeta Lal, ‘India’s Nuclear Energy Imperative’, The Diplomat, 8 October 2014.
50 Joby Warrick, ‘Obama and Modi announce agreement on U.S.-India efforts to fight global warming’, Washington Post, 30 September 2014.
51 Government of the United States, The White House, ‘U.S.-India Joint Statement’, 30 September 2014.
52 M. V. Ramana, ‘Indian activists detained for protesting against India-Australia uranium agreement,’ Dianuke, 5 September 2014.
53 While there are conflicting reports, in contrast to studies based on dose estimates in accordance with institutional levels (such as the ICRP), an Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD) epidemiological study found in 2007 that living within 2.5kms of the mining operations increased rates of illness (2118 households) and was upheld by the Jharkhand High Court in 2007. This was supported by a study in 2004 by Koide Hiroaki who found the level to be 10mSv/y around the mine and over 1 mSv/y in the villages. The UCIL managers have used the As Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) principle to set permissible radiation exposure limits and precautionary measures and have shown disregard for the conditions of indigenous peoples living in the area. See, Shakeel ur Rahman, ‘Study on Health status of Indigenous people around Jadugoda uranium mines in India’, IDPD.
UCIL Chairman Diwakar Acharya denied any correlation and blamed ordinary socio-economic factors (malnutrition). Stephanie March, ‘Australia to sell uranium to India but at what cost to its people?’, ABC 7:30 Report, 3 September 2014; Uranium Corporation of India hopes to get renewal of Jaduguda mine lease soon PTI, 6 October 2014; Rakteem Katakey, Tom Lasseter, ‘India’s Uranium Boss Says Deformed Children May Be ‘Imported’,’Bloomberg, 24 July 2014.
54 Mari Yamaguchi, ‘Sendai reactors vulnerable to eruptions, state-picked volcanologist says’, The Japan Times, 18 October 2014.
55 France, which until recently has drawn roughly three quarters of its energy supply from nuclear power stations, uses 40-50 percent of the nation’s mostly fresh water supply to cool its plants.
56 Germany, for example, prior to the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011 was heavily reliant on nuclear and fossil fuels. Over the past decade, however, its use of renewable energy mainly from solar and wind, has tripled. In 2013, however, renewable energy accounted for 24 percent of the nation’s total electricity supply. Despite government subsidies of roughly EU 16 billion, the Government claims to have created new businesses worth 40 billion euros per year and created additional employment to 400,000 people. Emily Steward, ABC, 29 October 2014.
57 See for example, Jeremy Rifkin, ‘No nukes!’, Los Angeles Times, 29 September 2006.
58 Nagao Shigeru, ‘Why Japan needs India as a Strategic Power’, Defence and Security Alert, 26 October 2014.
59 Vince Scappatura, ‘The U.S. “Pivot to Asia”, the China Specter and the Australian-American Alliance’, Asia-Pacific Journal, Vol. 12, Issue 36, No. 3, September 9, 2014.
60 Bhattacharjee, S., A. Sasi, ‘Japan wants slice of the nuclear pie, warms up to liability law’, Indian Express, 12 June 2014.
61 Editors, SIPRI Yearbook 2014.
62 Along with the P-5 states, India and Pakistan also continue to develop new systems capable of delivering nuclear weapons and are expanding their capacities to produce fissile material for military purposes. India conducted successful tests of the 5,000-km Agni-V, India’s first ICBM. Along with its shorter-range Prithvi missiles, India’s 2,000-km K-4 SLBM and its Agni-I (700-km), Agni-II (2,000-km) and Agni-III (3,000-km) missiles were tested under Strategic Forces Command in March 2014. It is still to test the 750-km K-15 SLBM in India’s first indigenous nuclear-powered submarine the INS Arihant in sea trials in late 2014. Rajat Pandit, ‘Pakistan surges ahead of India in nuclear stockpile: Report’, The Times of India, 17 June 2014.
64 Pakistan possesses roughly the equivalent nuclear weapons as India, which serves as a cheap deterrent in the face of India’s overwhelming conventional superiority. Nevertheless, Pakistan is developing shorter-range cruise missiles to evade ballistic missile defence and is planning a long-term build-up of its nuclear arsenal and delivery systems, including tactical short-range missiles, as a ‘full spectrum deterrent’. See for example, Tim Craig and Karen DeYoung, ‘Pakistan is eyeing sea-based and short-range nuclear missiles, analysts say’, Washington Post, 21 September 2014; Kyle Mizokami, ‘If Pakistan and India clash: 5 Pakistani weapons of war India should fear’, The National Interest, 24 August 2014; Kyle Mizokami, ‘If Pakistan and India went to war: 5 Indian weapons of war Pakistan should fear’, The National Interest, 16 August 2014; Amin Saikal, ‘Pakistan must de-escalate conflicts with three of its neighbours’, Canberra Times, 4 November 2014.
65 Amin Saikal, ‘Pakistan must de-escalate conflicts with three of its neighbours’, Canberra Times, 4 November 2014.
66 Kageyama Yuri, ‘Japan pro-bomb voices grow louder amid nuke debate’, Associated Press, 31 July 2012.
67 Adam Westlake, ‘Surprisingly Japan declines 16 UN outlawing nuclear weapons’, Japan Daily Press, 23 October 2012.
68 M. Mochizuki, ‘Japan tests the nuclear taboo’, Non-Proliferation Review, vol. 14, no. 2, July 2007.
69 M. Pomper and M. Toki, ‘Time to stop reprocessing in Japan’, Arms Control Today, January/February 2013.
70 Matthew Wald, ‘U.S. Panel shifts focus to reusing nuclear fuel’, New York Times, 23 September 2009.
71 Missile shield deployments are currently in Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, Greenland, Britain, Norway, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Poland, the Czech republic, Turkey, Georgia and potentially in Ukraine.
72 Chester Dawson, ‘Japan shows-off its missile defense system’, Wall Street Journal, 9 November 2012.
73 While Japan may have a powerful missile system integrated with the US, one should not overlook the US-initiated NATO interceptor missile system that incorporated the U.S.–Germany-Italy Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) and NATO’s Active Layered Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence (ALTBMD) program and is being deployed in the ongoing military build-up in Eastern Europe. See for example, ‘SM-3 BMD, in from the sea: EPAA & Aegis Ashore’, Defense Industry Daily, 13 October 2014.
74 Government of the United States, Department of Defense, ‘Nuclear Posture Review Report’, April 2010.
75 K. Lieber and D. Press (2006), ‘US Primacy in Foreign Policy’, Foreign Affairs, March/April, pp. 42–54.
76 Andrew Picone,‘Queenslanders have more reason than ever to be concerned about uranium mining in the sunshine stateMining companies now have more rights than the community in Newman’s Queensland’, SBS News, 1 October 2014.
77 Yusra Mushtaq, ‘A Blatant Violation Of NPT’, Eurasia Review, 26 September 2014.
78 Dave Sweeney, ‘Fukushima: Australia’s Radioactive Rocks And Responsibility’, New Matilda, 29 August 2014.
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One-time Yankees killer Dallas Keuchel is entertaining the idea of donning pinstripes.
So much so the free agent pitcher is willing to shave his signature beard in order to abide with team protocol.
"I think everybody is in play right now," Keuchel said in a recent interview with Fox Business. "The lure of the city would be really cool. I like pitching in Yankee Stadium.
"For the right opportunity, I would happily shave this beard off," Keuchel said, channeling his inner-Johhny Damon who did so in 2005. "It's all about winning. I've made that very clear from Day 1 of my career starting to this position right now."
But don’t stock up on shaving cream just yet, Yankees fans.
While Keuchel, 31, has a history of tormenting the Yankees stretching back to the 2015 wild card game, he struggled a ton this past season.
The Yanks, who have made pitching a priority this winter, had their way with the southpaw, tallying seven runs in two wins against Keuchel.
It was an overall down year for the 2015 Cy Young winner, who posted career highs in hits allowed, walks and WHIP.
The Daily News’ Wally Matthews suggested Brian Cashman stay away in his Yankees free agency primer.
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By the time Ohio State’s slow-arriving student section filled up, the Buckeyes had already taken a 7-0 lead against UNLV as speedy H-back Parris Campbell raced 69 yards for the opening touchdown on the offense’s second play. The Scarlet and Gray extended the early lead, continued to build upon it and never allowed the Rebels to even feign a threat as Ohio State dominated, winning 54-21 Saturday afternoon at Ohio Stadium.
Redshirt senior quarterback J.T. Barrett marched his team down the field at will against an overmatched, less-talented UNLV defense, completing 12-of-17 passes for 209 yards and five touchdowns and subbed out before halftime.
Seven players — wideouts Terry McLaurin, Johnnie Dixon, K.J. Hill, Binjimen Victor, Campbell and walk-on C.J. Saunders and tight end Rashod Berry — caught touchdowns for the Buckeyes, the most in a single game in Ohio State history.
Barrett overthrew sophomore wideout K.J Hill on one of his first passes of the game, but settled in as the Buckeyes scored on all but one of his drives. Campbell led Ohio State with three catches for 105 yards, but fumbled near the goal line on his team’s third drive of the game.
The Rebels offense stood no chance facing off against the Buckeyes’ stout defense. An aggressive, blitz-heavy defensive front pressured redshirt freshman quarterback Armani Rogers the entire game. Late in the first quarter, backed up at the 2-yard line, defensive tackle Dre’Mont Jones stuffed a run and forced Ohio State’s first safety of the season.
The Buckeyes racked up four sacks and a season-high 13 tackles for loss. Sophomore defensive end Nick Bosa led the Buckeyes with three tackles behind the line of scrimmage.
Rogers competed 11-of-19 passes for 88 yards. The Rebels, buoyed by junior running back Lexington Thomas’ 55-yard touchdown, rushed for 41 yards on 176 carries.
With 3:32 left in the second quarter while leading 37-7, redshirt freshman quarterback Dwayne Haskins replaced Barrett, and first-team All-American center Billy Price subbed out of the blowout.
Haskins threaded the needle to Saunders for his first touchdown of the game, a 28-yard strike across the middle. The strong-armed quarterback went 15-for-23 and 228 yards and tossed two touchdowns. He hit Berry late in the third quarter who rumbled for a 38-yard touchdown, the first of the defensive end-turned-tight end’s career.
Haskins later threw an interception to linebacker/defensive back Javin White, who took it 65 yards for a touchdown, the first pick-six thrown by an Ohio State quarterback this year.
Freshman running back J.K. Dobbins took 14 carries 95 yards. Once again, redshirt sophomore running back Mike Weber did not play. He has dealt with a hamstring injury since the beginning of fall camp and missed the first game of the season.
Defensive tackle Robert Landers, offensive guard Matt Burrell, linebacker Chris Worley and cornerback Shaun Wade also did not play for Ohio State due to injuries.
Ohio State will look for its third consecutive victory when the Buckeyes head to Piscataway, New Jersey, next Saturday to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (1-2) at 7:30 p.m.
Rewarded with another drop in the polls. Nothing will change until they beat a good team. Penn State will be a challenge. They had a great comeback against Iowa.
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Have you ever muttered the words &apos;my precious&apos; in a sinister tone? Mistaken an elderly gentleman with a giant white beard as Gandalf? Or bellowed &apos;you shall not pass!&apos; to someone standing in your way?
The chances are that you&apos;ve heard or done one of these things. And they all have one thing in common - apart from being somewhat anti-social, they are all references to author J.R.R Tolkien&apos;s universe.
Let&apos;s be honest - the books that distinguish Tolkien over the rest is his Lord of the Rings series. There&apos;s no better way to celebrate his work than to read his most recognised pieces.
Let&apos;s say the average person in Cambridge reads at least 300 words per minute.
According to a few sources, it takes approximately six hours and seven minutes to read the Fellowship of the Ring, four hours and 59 minutes to read The Two Towers, and six hours and seven minutes to read the Return of the King.
An estimation of around 17 hours proves it&apos;s possible. If you start now.
Tolkien Day wouldn&apos;t really be a true celebration without a bunch of lunatics dressing up as goblins.
There are a number of characters that you could dress up as - Gandalf, Galadriel, Aragorn, Legolas, Gollum, or the forgotten Tom Bombadil, who didn&apos;t quite make the film.
Even better yet, reading at a local book shop while dressed as Saruman. There&apos;s an idea.
Why not peruse the works of Tolkien&apos;s less known books or poetry?
Such works include The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, The Farmer Giles of Ham, The Battle of the Eastern Field, or Effantry.
Wherever someone lives and breathes, there is a Tolkien Society somewhere.
In this case, there&apos;s one in Cambridge. With just over 200 members on its Facebook group, the members enjoy various events in and around the city.
And I&apos;m sure there will be members who would gladly join you in your adventures with one and two.
There&apos;s an easy one. Just have a party. Include the first three, and maybe invite the fourth.
And you can&apos;t invite people to a party without turning your house into Minas Tirith.
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Is borrower required to pay?
DEAR BENNY: We are in the final steps of completing a refinance of our barely year-old $410,000 mortgage. We were pleased with the interest-rate drop, and our local bank was generous in dropping many of the so-called "junk fees" associated with a refinance. However, we are being charged $1,007 for title insurance. When I asked our banker about this, the response was basically, "Well, yes, it is a rip-off but there is nothing we can do about it."
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Ah, to be young again. Today’s NY Sun runs an article about the new show Gossip Girls, a fictitious depiction of life at an all-girls private high school on the Upper East Side. Created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, the masterminds behind The O.C., it’s loosely based on the books of the same name.
We’re not surprised. It’s only a matter of time before the kids are playing beer pong with the I-banking set at Brother Jimmy’s, assuming, of course, they weren’t already.
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Kyle Schwarber may be out for the season, but the home run ball he hit during the Cubs-Cardinals National League Division Series has been returned to the top of Wrigley Field's right field video board.
On Monday morning's "Mully and Hanley" show on WSCR-AM 670, Cubs president of business operations Crane Kenney said the ball is back to where it originally landed after it was taken down after the 2015 season.
Kenney said the ball was taken down in part to prevent anyone from getting the idea of climbing up the board and stealing it.
Meanwhile, the metal detectors are all in place and finishing touches were being put on the outside walls of Wrigley Field in anticipation of tonight’s home opener. Fans are being asked to arrive early since it will be the first game with the metal detectors at entrances, a security measure mandated by Major League Baseball.
After landing from Phoenix last night, the Cubs took a bus to Wrigley Field to sneak a look at their new, 30,000-square-foot clubhouse.
The brick pavers that were removed during construction have been moved to the sidewalks on Waveland and Sheffield Avenues, with each section surrounding the name of a former Cubs player or employee, ranging from Sammy Sosa to former clubhouse man Yosh Kawano.
The Cubs players arrived at Wrigley from their opening road trip before midnight on Sunday and got a tour of the new, expanded clubhouse. The Cubs denied all media requests to photograph or videotape the clubhouse because president Theo Epstein wanted his team to be the first ones to see it.
One fan was already camped out at the bleacher entrance at 7 a.m., waiting for the gates to open this afternoon. Veteran bleacher bum Ron Hayden said he arrived early to make sure he got his customary seat in left field.
A sign outside the bleachers lists prohibited items, which includes laser pointers, noise makers and unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones. Cleveland pitcher Trevor Bauer flew a drone at U.S. Cellular Field over the weekend and crashed it in front of the new video board.
Photos from Wrigley Field for the Cubs home opener on April 11, 2016.
Cubs fans in the left field bleachers celebrate the 5-3 win over the Reds in the Cubs' home opener on Monday, April 11, 2016, at Wrigley Field.
Cubs players celebrate the 5-3 win over the Reds in the Cubs' home opener on Monday, April 11, 2016, at Wrigley Field.
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As many British visitors to France have learnt to their dismay, if you ask a local, “Parlez-vous anglais?”, the answer is often “Non”.
Such a response, perhaps accompanied by a dismissive Gallic shrug, may prompt the appearance on the traveller’s face of what the author PG Wodehouse described as “the shifty hangdog look that announces that an Englishman is about to speak French”.
Britons have never been renowned for their mastery of French — or indeed any other foreign language — but a new ranking shows that our historical rivals and closest neighbours have little to crow about when it comes to their command of English.
The English Proficiency Index, a survey of countries without English as a national language, puts France in 35th place – behind the Philippines, South Korea and Lebanon.
The index, compiled by Education First, a language training company, ranks the French as the worst English speakers in western Europe while Sweden comes out top.
Christian Monlord, a Frenchman and conference interpreter, said the results did not surprise him. “French used to be the language of diplomacy, and it is still a big international language, so many French people still take the attitude that others should speak their language,” said Mr Monlord, 75.
Another reason why the French are lagging behind in learning English may be a feeling that the world’s lingua franca is creeping into daily life in France, threatening the very survival of the language of Voltaire.
English expressions are increasingly used by French speakers, even if their overall level of spoken English may not be good.
Parisians speak the best English in France, according to the survey, but it places the capital 25th among international cities behind Shanghai, Buenos Aires and Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria.
Many French people also blame foreign language teaching in schools.
Teachers say they are trying to place more emphasis on conversational English, but they are often limited by a lack of resources, especially in small towns and rural areas.
Damien Gabriel, 29, said children and their parents were also to blame. “I think there are many kids in school who don’t understand how important it is to speak English,” he said.
According to a Eurobarometer report in 2012, 39 per cent of France’s population speak English. Another survey published by the European Commission indicated that 38 per cent of Britons speak a foreign language.
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The Lakers' Lamar Odom and teammate Ron Artest guard Rockets guard Trevor Ariza during the first half.
Rockets guard Trevor Ariza gets a hug from the Lakers' Kobe Bryant before the start of the game.
The Lakers' Ron Artest guards Rockets guard Trevor Ariza during the first half.
The Lakers' Ron Artest dives for a loose ball as Rockets forward Luis Scola looks on during the first half.
The Lakers' Ron Artest tries to get a hand on the ball as Rockets guard Trevor Ariza makes his way around during the first half.
The Lakers' Ron Artest points at Rockets guard Trevor Ariza during the first half.
The Lakers' Ron Artest looks onto the court from the bench during the first half.
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant guards Rockets forward Trevor Ariza during the first half.
Rockets forward Trevor Ariza goes up for a lay up in traffic during the first half.
Lakers forward Ron Artest defends against Rockets guard Aaron Brooks during the first half.
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant flys to the basket with Rockets forward Shane Battier trailing during the second half.
Rockets forward Luis Scola drives around the Lakers' Luke Walton during the second half.
The Rockets' Aaron Brooks jumps up as the crowd goes wild after one of his three-point shots during the second half.
The Lakers' Ron Artest battles with the Rockets' Chuck Hayes for a loose ball during the second half.
Rockets guard Aaron Brooks drives around the Lakers' Derek Fisher and Lamar Odom during the second half.
Rockets forward Trevor Ariza drives up the court against the Lakers' Lamar Odom during the second half.
The Rockets' Kyle Lowry drives up the court against the Lakers' Derek Fisher during the second half.
The Lakers' Ron Artest with his haircut during the second half.
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant flys to the basket with Rockets forward Louis Scola trailing during the second half.
Ropckets forward Trevor Ariza goes up for a basket during the second half.
The Lakers' Kobe Bryant gets a shot off as the Rockets' Shane Battier tries to defend during the second half.
The Lakers' Kobe Bryant bumps into the Rockets' Shane Battier during the second half.
The Lakers' Kobe Bryant booed by fans during a free throw during the second half.
Lakers forward Ron Artest fights Rockets forward Chuck Hayes for the ball in the fourth quarter.
Lakers forward Ron Artest puts a hand in the face of Rockets forward Carl Landry during the second half.
Rockets guard Trevor Ariza celebrates with Pops Mensah-Bonsu after his three-point shot during the last seconds of the second half.
The Rockets' Trevor Ariza tries to get his hands on a ball held by the Lakers' Ron Artest during the second half.
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SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego International Auto Show is scheduled to open a four-day run at the convention center Thursday, with 400 new-model vehicles, alternative fuel cars, exotics, crossovers and classics on display.
Vehicles from 36 manufacturers will be shown, including, among others, a 2017 model year Porsche 911 Carrera coupe with new twin turbo engines, and a newly designed Lincoln Continental.
"The cars continue to be the stars," said Kevin Leap, show director. "Today's vehicles shine more brightly than ever with a level of quality, design brilliance, and tech savvy that has never been seen before."
Attendees will be able to test drive cars to experience various features first-hand, check out environmentally friendly vehicles and enjoy entertainment, according to the New Car Dealers Association of San Diego County, which organizes the event.
The show floor opens daily at 10 a.m. Closing times are 6 p.m. today, 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 7 p.m. Sunday.
Admission for attendees 13 over is $12. The cost is $9 for seniors 62 and over and military with identification, and $8 for youth 7-12 years old. Children 6 and under are free when accompanied by an adult.
Children 12 and under are free on Ford Family Day on Sunday, when accompanied by a paying adult.
Parking is available for $15 at the San Diego Convention Center. Show organizers, however, encourage visitors to take the trolley to the Gaslamp stop.
Information on discount coupons or VIP e-tickets is available at SDAutoShow.com .
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Holland, others condemn bigotry; Monson's chair vacant in afternoon, but he addresses priesthood session.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Conferencegoers before the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Conferencegoers before the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Brook P. Hales, Secretary to the First Presidency, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Members affirm a vote during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Members affirm a vote during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Members affirm a vote during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Kevin Jergensen, Managing Director Church Auditing Department, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency, and President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, arrive during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Elder Gary B. Sabin, General Authority Seventy, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Elder Valeri V. Cordón, of the Seventy, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune A couple cuddles during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune President Thomas S. Monson's empty seat during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017. Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Elder Neil L. Andersen, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, speaks during the afternoon session of the 187th Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday, April 1, 2017.
During a time of jarring political polarity and town hall meetings marred by shouts and boos, several top Mormon officials Saturday strongly condemned hostility and hatred as anathema to Christian discipleship.
"Someday I hope a great global chorus will harmonize across all racial and ethnic lines," apostle Jeffrey R. Holland said, "declaring that guns, slurs and vitriol are not the way to deal with human conflict."
Holland was among more than a dozen speakers who addressed tens of thousands of Mormons in downtown Salt Lake City and millions more around the world, tuned into the LDS Church&apos;s 187th Annual General Conference.
One voice the faithful didn&apos;t hear during the morning and afternoon sessions was that of LDS Church President Thomas S. Monson. The increasingly frail 89-year-old leader presided over the morning gathering after being helped to his seat.
In the afternoon, that chair  between Henry B. Eyring and Dieter F. Uchtdorf, his two counselors in the governing First Presidency  sat noticeably vacant.
A spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said Monson, viewed by Mormons as a "prophet, seer and revelator," was "conserving his energy" for the remainder of the weekend&apos;s sessions.
Monson has led the 15.8 million-member church for more than nine years; Mormon presidents serve for life.
Two years ago, the Utah-based religion announced Monson was "feeling the effects of advancing age." Since then, the longtime LDS leader, who also didn&apos;t attend last Saturday&apos;s women&apos;s meeting, has been scaling back his conference sermons.
Other speakers had no trouble preaching with passion about current ills.
"Economic deprivation is a curse that keeps on cursing, year after year and generation after generation. It damages bodies, maims spirits, harms families, and destroys dreams," Holland said, decrying poverty and lamenting that "so many around us suffer from mental and emotional illness or other debilitating health limitations."
The former president of LDS Church-owned Brigham Young University pleaded with members to stay in the faith&apos;s expanding fold.
"There is room for those who speak different languages, celebrate diverse cultures, and live in a host of locations. There is room for the single, the married, for large families and for the childless," he said. "There is room for those who once had questions regarding their faith and room for those who still do. There is room for those with differing sexual attractions."
In short, Holland proclaimed, "there is a place for everyone who loves God."
Fellow apostle Robert D. Hales said as Latter-day Saints follow Christ, "there will be no disparity between the kindness we show our enemies and the kindness we bestow on our friends. We will be as honest when no one is looking at us as when others are watching. We will be as devoted to God in the public square as we are in our private closet."
Like the parable of the good Samaritan, true believers "cross the road to minister to whomever is in need, even if they are not within the circle of our friends," Hales said. "We bless them that curse us. We do good to those who despitefully use us. Is any attribute more godly or Christlike?"
In the morning, apostle Dale G. Renlund cautioned Mormons against railing on opponents.
"We must guard against bigotry that raises its ugly voice toward those who hold different opinions. Bigotry manifests itself, in part, in unwillingness to grant equal freedom of expression," he said. "Everyone, including people of religion, has the right to express his or her opinions in the public square."
Renlund, a physician by training, spent his teen years in Europe in the 1960s, where he felt "picked on and bullied" as an American, he said, "as though I were personally responsible for unpopular foreign policies."
During that time, he also witnessed the "ugliness of prejudice and discrimination suffered by those who are targeted because of their race or ethnicity."
In LDS history, Mormons were persecuted for their faith, Renlund noted. "How ironically sad it would be if we were to treat others as we have been treated. ... Let us fully mirror [Jesus&apos;] love and love one another so openly and completely that no one feels abandoned, alone or hopeless."
Eyring, who spoke first Saturday, addressed Mormons&apos; theological drive to seek out their ancestors  a practice they believe opens the door of the LDS gospel to long dead kin  and the growing fascination with genealogy among millions of others.
"Interest in exploring one&apos;s family history has grown exponentially. At ever-increasing rates, people seem drawn to their ancestry with more than just casual curiosity," he said. "Genealogical libraries, associations and technologies have emerged around the world to support this interest."
He said the "hearts of the children  you and me  have turned to our fathers, our ancestors. The affection you feel for your ancestors is ... deeply seated in your sense of who you are. But it has to do with more than just inherited DNA."
The morning&apos;s concluding speaker was Russell M. Nelson, senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and next in the line for the church presidency.
Nelson touted the power of faith to change lives.
"True disciples of Jesus Christ are willing to stand out, speak up, and be different from people of the world," the 92-year-old leader said. Faith "propels us to do things we otherwise would not do. Faith that motivates us to action gives us more access to his power."
When believers "reach up for the Lord&apos;s power ... with the same intensity that a drowning person has when grasping and gasping for air," Nelson promised, "power from Jesus Christ will be yours. When the savior knows you truly want to reach up to him  when he can feel that the greatest desire of your heart is to draw his power into your life  you will be led by the Holy Ghost to know exactly what you need to do."
In the afternoon, apostle Neil L. Andersen emphasized the importance of "overcoming the world," rising above earthly concerns and focusing on God.
"Overcoming the world is not a global invasion, but a private, personal battle, requiring hand-to-hand combat with our own internal foes," Andersen said. "The world, on the other hand, is more interested in indulging the natural man than in subduing him."
One of those indulgences is social media. "A disciple of Christ is not alarmed if a post about her faith does not receive 1,000 likes or even a few friendly emojis," Andersen said. "Overcoming the world is less concerned with our online connections and more concerned with our heavenly connection to God."
Fellow apostle M. Russell Ballard advised the faithful to set goals for their lives and make plans to achieve them, "within the framework of our Heavenly Father&apos;s eternal plan."
The most important aims, he said, are "to return to [God&apos;s] presence and to receive the eternal blessings that come from making and keeping covenants."
Ballard warned about "loud voices" used by Satan  including the mass media, the internet and social media  "that seek to drown out the small and still voice of the Holy Spirit that can show us &apos;all things&apos; we should do to return and receive."
"We must keep the doctrine and gospel of Jesus Christ at the center of our goals and plans," Ballard said. "Without him, no eternal goal is possible, and our plans to achieve our eternal goals will surely fail."
No women spoke Saturday, but three new female leaders were named to lead the women&apos;s Relief Society.
Editor David Noyce and reporter Sean P. Means contributed to this story.
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No, Trump can’t pardon himself. The Constitution tells us so.
Correction: An earlier version of this op-ed misspelled the name of former defense secretary Caspar Weinberger. This version has been updated.
Laurence H. Tribe is the Carl M. Loeb University Professor and Professor of Constitutional Law at Harvard Law School. Richard Painter, a law professor at the University of Minnesota, was chief White House ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2007 and is vice-chair of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). Norman Eisen, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, was chief White House ethics lawyer for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2011 and is chair of CREW.
Can a president pardon himself? Four days before Richard Nixon resigned, his own Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel opined no, citing “the fundamental rule that no one may be a judge in his own case.” We agree.
The Justice Department was right that guidance could be found in the enduring principles that no one can be both the judge and the defendant in the same matter, and that no one is above the law.
The Constitution specifically bars the president from using the pardon power to prevent his own impeachment and removal. It adds that any official removed through impeachment remains fully subject to criminal prosecution. That provision would make no sense if the president could pardon himself.
The pardon provision of the Constitution is there to enable the president to act essentially in the role of a judge of another person’s criminal case, and to intervene on behalf of the defendant when the president determines that would be equitable. For example, the president might believe the courts made the wrong decision about someone’s guilt or about sentencing; President Barack Obama felt this way about excessive sentences for low-level drug offenses. Or the president might be impressed by the defendant’s subsequent conduct and, using powers far exceeding those of a parole board, might issue a pardon or commutation of sentence.
Other equitable considerations could also weigh in favor of leniency. A president might choose to grant a pardon before prosecution of a person when the president believes that the prosecution is not in the national interest; President Gerald Ford pardoned Nixon in part for this reason.
Or a president may conclude that even if a person may have committed a crime, he was acting in good faith to protect the national interest; President George H.W. Bush pardoned former defense secretary Caspar Weinberger in the Iran-contra affair in part for this reason.
In all such instances, however, the president is acting as a kind of super-judge and making a decision about someone else’s conduct, the justice of someone else’s sentence or whether it is in the national interest to prosecute someone else. He is not making a decision about himself.
The Constitution embodies this broad precept against self-dealing in its rule that congressional pay increases cannot take effect during the Congress that enacted them, in its prohibition against using official power to gain favors from foreign states and even in its provision that the chief justice, not the vice president, is to preside when the Senate conducts an impeachment trial of the president.
The Constitution’s pardon clause has its origins in the royal pardon granted by a sovereign to one of his or her subjects. We are aware of no precedent for a sovereign pardoning himself, then abdicating or being deposed but being immune from criminal process. If that were the rule, many a deposed king would have been spared instead of going to the chopping block.
We know of not a single instance of a self-pardon having been recognized as legitimate. Even the pope does not pardon himself. On March 28, 2014, in St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis publicly kneeled before a priest and confessed his sins for about three minutes.
President Trump thinks he can do a lot of things just because he is president. He says that the president can act as if he has no conflicts of interest. He says that he can fire the FBI director for any reason he wants (and he admitted to the most outrageous of reasons in interviews and in discussion with the Russian ambassador). In one sense, Trump is right — he can do all of these things, although there will be legal repercussions if he does. Using official powers for corrupt purposes — such as impeding or obstructing an investigation — can constitute a crime.
But there is one thing we know that Trump cannot do — without being a first in all of human history. He cannot pardon himself.
Elizabeth Holtzman: In the Russia probe, could Trump pardon himself?
Dana Milbank: Trump can do whatever he wants. God help us.
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Viewers will not want to miss Friday’s episode of General Hospital. Spoilers tease that everybody will see lots of juicy scenes revolving around the Lulu and Ryan storyline and the January 25 show will seemingly set fans up for a big surprise next week, too.
As Friday’s show begins, General Hospital spoilers indicate that Lulu will remain unconscious after the attack and her emergency surgery. The sneak peek shared via Twitter details that Laura will be by her daughter’s bedside, begging her to wake up. In addition, Lulu’s father-in-law, Sonny, will pay a visit to her as well.
While it sounds as if Lulu will face a lengthy, difficult recovery, General Hospital spoilers suggest that she might peek her eyes open during Friday’s show. Even if she does start to regain consciousness, viewers should be prepared to learn that she won’t be able to share any bombshells about her attacker at this point.
Elsewhere in General Hospital, spoilers suggest that Ryan will be finding out whether his sight has been restored. SheKnows Soaps notes that Ava will be by Ryan’s side — and it sounds as if he probably will be able to see again. Next week, it’s said that he’ll try to finish the job he started with Lulu.
Across town, General Hospital spoilers reveal that Jordan will talk with Anna about the case. Jordan had wanted to grill Peter about where he was prior to the attack on Lulu, and naturally, Anna was quite concerned about this. It looks as if Jordan will share some in-depth information with Anna about what they know about the attacks so far — and Anna will be getting some answers about something.
During Thursday’s episode, Jason and Sam finally made love again. As the Inquisitr previously detailed, Jason and Sam will be fully together going forward, although they will try to keep this development under the radar for the most part. During Friday’s show, however, it seems that Sam will voice some anxiety about what happens when Jason leaves her place.
Jason will promise Sam that things are different now. He was patient in waiting for her to decide what she wanted — and when she was ready to move forward — but he’s all-in when it comes to being reunited with his love. While Sam might feel anxious, he’ll promise that he’s coming back.
Fans always love to see Tristan Rogers pop up as Robert, and they’re in for a treat heading into the February sweeps. Rogers is back beginning with Friday’s show — and General Hospital spoilers hint that soon Robert and Finn will be working together to figure out how Anna was infected with the virus.
Franco and Elizabeth will further discuss the situation with Aiden, and the possibility that he’s gay. All signs point toward the couple reaching out and doing their best to support the little boy during this journey. The next show will also have some scenes involving Maxie and Peter as a relationship continues to slowly evolve between the two.
There are a lot of questions remaining regarding what happens next with Ryan and this case. General Hospital spoilers hint that there may be at least one more victim before he’s caught and he’ll seemingly go to great lengths to avoid detection. Don’t miss any of the drama coming up with Friday’s show, and stay tuned for additional teasers regarding what’s coming next.
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After the martyrdom of St. Boniface, Vergilius was made Bishop of Salzburg (766 or 767) and laboured successfully for the upbuilding of his diocese as well as for the spread of the Faith in neighbouring heathen countries, especially in Carinthia. He died at Salzburg, 27 November, 789. In 1233 he was canonized by Gregory IX. His doctrine that the earth is a sphere was derived from the teaching of ancient geographers, and his belief in the existence of the antipodes was probably influenced by the accounts which the ancient Irish voyagers gave of their journeys. This, at least, is the opinion of Rettberg ("Kirchengesch. Deutschlands", II, 236).
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SANOK, POLAND — In the far southeast corner of Poland, the warm summer air is resounding with the rasp of old-fashioned iron saws and the satisfying twack-twack-twack of ax blades on wood.
Here, in the foothills of the Carpathians, an international crew of master timber craftsmen and students has been working on an intensely hands-on project that combines history, art and education. They are building a replica of the tall peaked roof and inner cupola of an ornate wooden synagogue that stood for 300 years in the town of Gwozdziec, now in Ukraine.
The replica, which will be 85 percent of the original size of the building, will be installed as one of the key components of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, currently under construction in Warsaw and scheduled to open in 2013.
Its elaborate structure and the intricate painted decoration on the cupola ceiling will reproduce a form of architectural and artistic expression that was wiped out in World War II, when the Nazis put the torch to some 200 wooden synagogues in Eastern Europe. Many of them, like that in Gwozdziec, were centuries old and extraordinarily elaborate, with tiered roofs and richly decorative interior painting.
The Gwozdziec Synagogue, built in the 17th and 18th centuries, was a “truly resplendent synagogue that exemplified a high point in Jewish architectural art and religious painting,” the architectural historian Thomas C. Hubka, an expert on the building, has written.
Constructing the replica is a joint project of the museum in Warsaw and the Handshouse Studio, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit organization that emphasizes learning by building, particularly the reconstruction of historical structures and other objects.
The Browns conducted years of research on Eastern Europe’s lost wooden synagogues before embarking on construction of the Gwozdziec replica in Sanok in May. They studied prewar photographs, drawings and other documentation, built models and made on-site investigations of wooden churches and other buildings still found in Poland and Ukraine.
There are also several impressive masonry synagogues within an easy drive of Sanok. The 18th-century synagogue in Lancut, now a museum, has beautifully restored interior painting and other decoration. One in Rymanow stood for decades as a ruin but has been partially rebuilt, with a tall peaked roof now protecting the vigorous but sadly fading frescoes of Biblical animals and Jerusalem that grace its walls.
In Lesko, the 17th-century synagogue was rebuilt in the 1960s and today houses a gallery of local arts and crafts. Lesko’s vast Jewish cemetery, just a short walk away, is one of the oldest in Poland, with massive tombstones dating to the 16th century.
For the Gwozdziec project, an international team of nearly 30 master craftsmen from the Timber Framers Guild are being joined by groups of students from Massachusetts College of Art and Design, where the Browns teach.
Timber framers came from the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, Belgium and Japan to lend their skills, all on a volunteer basis.
All the work is being carried out using techniques and tools that the builders of the original synagogue would have used: axes, saws, mallets and other hand-held implements. The aim is to gain an understanding of just what went into the building of the synagogue and how its construction would have been envisaged and carried out — and also to lend authenticity to the replica.
“It brings back the lost story of the synagogue, the town, this culture,” said Patrick Goguen, a student at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
The project is occurring in several stages. Building the timber-framed roof and cupola is the first stage, running through June. Students and artists will hold workshops this summer and next summer to reproduce the intricate polychrome painting that adorned the ceiling of the cupola. These workshops will be held in eight Polish towns in masonry synagogues that still stand.
The timber framing is taking place in a corner of Sanok’s Ethnographic Park, a sprawling open-air folk-architecture museum that displays wooden buildings — houses, barns, churches, chapels and even beehives — that have been transferred from a number of villages in the region.
Here, thick logs are being hewn by hand into flat-sided timbers — a process that can take two days per log — and then manually sawed into thinner pieces. The components are then shaped and joined without nails.
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As I said the other day, being an environmentalist in China is not easy and potentially bad for your health. A mob reportedly beat up a local environmentalist who called for government officials to swim in a heavily polluted river in China.
We’d written about the river’s plight a week ago (check out the photo of the river to the right).
Interestingly, the man who was assaulted was not the local business person who offered big money ($32,000) to a government environmental official if he’d swim in the polluted river, but instead they targeted a 60 year old activist who had backed the call.
We’re not immune “to two weights, two measures” in the US either (e.g., Wall Street getting away with economic destruction, while the little guy pays the price) but for the most part, it doesn’t involve street violence.
It looks like someone is not interested in cleaning up the river.
“The whole thing lasted four or five hours until the police arrived. My father got hit in the head by six or seven people, with their fists. He is now feeling dizzy and sleeping all the time,” she added, claiming the attack had been orchestrated by local officials.
Calls to the mobile phone of the local Communist Party chief went unanswered on Wednesday.
We’re heading that way fast… only with more guns.
I foresee life as a meme for the bizarre “[You] used the internet, you always use the internet!” said by the mob.
China’s path to prosperity and national independence has been betrayed at every juncture by the CCP, a rancid collection of Stalinist’s and Maoist’s with a choke hold on government. They’re not plutocrats like Democrats and Republicans here but they might as well be.
It’s almost inevitable at this point that they’ll follow the Russian Stalinisit’s and try to liquidate the extremely deformed Chinese workers state and reintroduce capitalist norms. .
China: everything old is new again. In spite of its ritzy, world class cities China is still a backward hell hole of human abuse and explotation.
That’s exactly what I was thinking. Except it’s not that far off.
Consider what happens whenever someone stands up as an object case for any kind of social reform — like that family without health insurance, who then had to endure harassment for weeks. “OMG, they have granite countertops! Fraud!” Or that guy in Newtown CT getting death threats because he took in a bus driver and a bunch of kids after the school shooting massacre. (Heck, right anybody who gets national attention in advocating for any gun control laws gets death threats now.) Or the very real danger anybody involved in providing safe & legal abortions has to face every day.
Or let’s get closer to the topic at hand: How many perfectly peaceful environmental activist groups have been investigated by the FBI in recent years as possible eco-terrorism suspects?
We can expect that here — and worse — when the Teabaggers and gun nuts are in control.
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How Far is Skyhome Mahalakshmi Nagar?
Mahalakshmi Nagar is a residential Plot development by Skyhome Enterprises. It is an Ready to occupy project of Skyhome Enterprises. It has a thoughtful design and is being developed with all the modern day amenities as well as basic facilities.
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Thorpe of the New York Trucking and Delivery Association says the decision to raise penalties won’t solve the parking crisis.
For more than a decade, Ken Thorpe has been a soldier in the fight against parking tickets, which has become part of the escalating war for access to the curb. It's a conflict that has intensified in recent years as ride-hail services have clogged roads, New Yorkers have had more of their purchases delivered, and the streetscape has been remade with bicycle lanes, pedestrian malls and restrictions on parking and unloading.
The city "has whittled away at the commercial parking infrastructure," said Thorpe, the chief executive of the New York Trucking and Delivery Association, which he founded in 2004 to deal with parking issues for small and midsize businesses.
At the same time, trucks are making more deliveries than ever, and they must do that regardless of whether there's unloading space available. "Trucking is not a 'choice' situation," Thorpe said. "It's a necessity."
But now the 600 members of his group, as well as large fleet operators such as UPS and FedEx, are facing higher fines—and possibly more paperwork and time in traffic court—as a little-known yet controversial city policy comes under fire. The stipulated-fine program was established in 2004 by the Department of Finance to let businesses pay slightly reduced fines—and no fines at all for some infractions—in exchange for not contesting their tickets.
It was mainly a way to reduce everyone's administrative costs while having delivery companies pay roughly what they would have otherwise. (The reductions were calculated with an eye on the percentage of tickets that were successfully challenged.) But the program was a sore point with advocacy groups such as Transportation Alternatives, which considered it a corporate giveaway that neutered traffic enforcement.
Last month, in a bid at leveling the playing field for businesses not in the program—and furthering the city's congestion-reduction goals—the Finance Department announced that next month it would raise the program's fines, including those now set at zero.
As if that were not bad enough for Thorpe's membership, in the same week five City Council members introduced a bill to abolish the program. They denounced it as a free pass to large corporations and a contributor to reckless parking and congestion.
Thorpe says it's the council bill that's a giveaway—to parking-ticket brokers, who stand to gain business adjudicating tickets. He sees no way that the Finance Department's plan will change driver behavior or have any impact on congestion.
"The theory of the program was there are bad things, good things and some things in between, and it taught the driver you're going to pay a lot to do bad things and little or none to do the others," Thorpe said. "Now they've put the bad and good closer together, removing the driver's incentive for doing the good, because it's going to cost just a little more to do the bad."
In fact, good and bad parking behavior will not be punished that similarly. The most serious violations that get discounts, such as obstructing traffic ($10 off the $115 total), will now get no break at all, while many of the zero-fine infractions will cost $25.
But Thorpe says those increases could cost some of his members hundreds of dollars a week—enough that he would consider taking them out of the program. The $35 fine for double parking outside Midtown is still better than the official $115, but he notes that double parking is legal for the first 30 minutes, and enforcement is not always scrupulous.
In 2011 he sued the city, which for some years had been slapping double-parked delivery trucks with the more expensive violation of blocking a travel lane, which carried a $40 fine. In 2016 the city settled and paid those covered by the lawsuit $14 million.
Even so, the Finance Department, which worked with the Department of Transportation on the new fine schedule, says more needs to be done to ease congestion. The agency says the stipulated-fine program has been sending the wrong signal to the wider parking universe by not reflecting the fact that not all double-parking tickets are dismissed.
"We need the program to have incentives that are aligned with the city's goals to reduce congestion, and we need the program to be fair," said Finance Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey Shear. "We agree that the conversation about congestion is a larger conversation, and there are many other factors, and this program is one small piece. But we don't want to send the wrong message by saying double parking outside of Midtown will cost businesses nothing."
The Transportation Department maintains that it is doing all it can.
The agency is "committed to improving commercial accessibility throughout the five boroughs, especially in the context of our street-improvement projects," a spokeswoman said. As part of those projects, "new curb regulations are installed that are complementary to the larger curb-management goals of the corridor, such as faster bus mobility, reduction of double parking, and better commercial access."
But the Transportation Department is aware that it's a long way from curing congestion when demand for deliveries from myriad e-commerce businesses, including Amazon and Fresh Direct, is bigger than ever.
"Consumer demands and the amount of available space we have at the curb, they're at odds right now," Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg said at a Crain's breakfast forum last month. She added that parking enforcement can only do so much, and larger fixes, including congestion pricing and technology such as license-plate readers, might be part of the answer.
"Right now the demand for the curb exceeds the supply," she said.
Some members of the City Council are not convinced that higher fines will make the program more effective. They say any solution will include abolishing stipulated fines.
"This program doesn't work," said Costa Constantinides, a City Council member from Queens, who introduced the bill to end the program as one of several parking and transportation proposals. "Trucks are still parking in bike lanes. It's been around for years, and I really feel it's prohibiting us from having a real conversation around parking that we desperately need to have."
As part of that conversation, the councilman introduced a bill that would require the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which oversees city agencies, to have buildings under its jurisdiction receive deliveries between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m.
"The city should lead by example," Constantinides said.
That's not so simple, it turns out. A Transportation Department off-hours delivery program proved unworkable for many businesses, some of which had to add employees to accept the shipments. The councilman said his program would be "one part of the puzzle."
As it happens, parking-ticket broker Glen Bolofsky has contributed more than $4,000 to Constantinides' campaign treasury in the past five years. A spokesman for the councilman dismissed the idea that the bill was intended to help brokers.
"The majority of those that benefit from this [stipulated-fine] program are big-box delivery corporations who flout traffic laws at the expense of pedestrians, cyclists and drivers," the spokesman said.
Bolofsky agreed that ending the program would help brokers, but he insisted the biggest beneficiary would be the public. "Congestion will be reduced," he said. "More money will be raised."
Assuming 70% of double-parking tickets are dismissed, he estimated the city has forfeited $147.5 million over the life of the program by not fining participants for double parking beyond Midtown.
The new schedule will collect about 30% of double-parking fines, but Bolofsky insists the program still benefits the biggest operators the most. He maintains that neither the city nor companies such as UPS will lose money adjudicating tickets, arguing that many companies still have in-house teams for the job, and automation can reduce the expense further. He noted that the city handled 12 million tickets a year in 1990, when they were handwritten, and had to deal with only 10 million last year. Enforcement agents now use handheld devices that reduce the errors and bad handwriting that led to dismissals.
The Finance Department disagrees with his conclusions, saying both the city and the 1,751 companies in the program—encompassing 48,880 vehicles—would spend more without the program.
"We would need more hearing officers," Shear said. "The companies would have to retain brokers or hire staff to defend against these parking tickets. In terms of revenue, there would be no increase to the city."
Apart from whether the program is good for the city, a walk through Midtown with several UPS executives revealed how difficult following parking rules can be.
Another option would be to park at a metered spot a couple of blocks away and cart diamonds by hand truck to recipients, which UPS rules out for security reasons. "It would put our driver and other people in the area at risk," said Axel Carrion, director of state public affairs.
A few blocks away, on West 50th Street, where commercial parking was allowed at that hour, every space between Sixth and Seventh avenues was taken, mostly by delivery and commercial vehicles. There were two idling for-hire vehicles and three cars with "parking authorization" placards—the bane of parking-reform advocates—on their dashboard.
Even when a UPS driver finds a legal spot, regulations can conflict with the company's efforts to operate efficiently. Using new dispatch-planning technology, the company has increased the number of packages a truck will carry to nearly 400 so that one truck does the work of two. But that truck needs to stay in one place much of the workday, doing pickups when it's done with deliveries. Parking rules—which aim to promote the flow of traffic and keep operators from hogging spots—require it to move after three hours.
But circling the block will delay deliveries and the truck could lose the spot, so the driver will stay put. This reduces congestion and pollution. But the ticket, which costs program participants nothing, will set them back $25 under the new schedule.
Overall UPS expects its payments under the fine program to jump 32% next year, to $21.8 million, with a $3.4 million increase from double parking and more than $1 million from unloading in the wrong spot or at the wrong time. The company says it would like to try other solutions, such as paying for spots where a truck could sit all day. Long term, it would like to see new building construction include space for unloading.
Right now the firm is weighing the benefits of staying in the program.
"My drivers can be trained to avoid the ticket, and we have drastically reduced the amount of tickets over the past couple of years," said Dan Byrnes, director of finance at UPS, adding that the city's ticket data aided his efforts. "Now with these changes, [the city] is not really helping. Just raising prices is not going to change behavior."
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France is in a difficult position. It has not had a sufficient spur to reform, despite the platitudes by both Sarkozy and Hollande. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a great spur to Germany, though it took it a few years to realize it. A capital strike against the periphery by both creditors in the Eurozone and international investors forced the periphery to adopt policies they would not have otherwise.
Large pools of capital, including central banks and sovereign wealth funds continue to buy French bonds, keeping yields near German levels. The logic is not so much about fair value based on economic fundamentals. Instead, it is a political judgment. Despite the divergence between German and French economic prowess, the two remain the twin pillars of Europe. As long as one is confident that EMU remains intact, then France's credit is as good as German credit.
That same logic, of course, can be applied to other euro area countries. On one hand, officials want investors to distinguish between different credit conditions. On the other hand, they insist they will not allow EMU to fail. As we have learned over the last couple of years, this does not preclude sovereign debt restructuring (Greece and Cyprus), and even capital controls (Cyprus).
The peripheral premium over Germany was narrower prior to the crisis. There was even a brief shining moment that Spain traded through Germany (this is to say that yields slipped marginally below German yields). Continued easing of ECB monetary policy can see spreads compress further. However, it is unreasonable to think the spreads can return to status quo ante, as the risk of debt restructuring must be perceived as higher than before.
Managers of large pools of capital recognize there are not sufficient bunds available. Recall that next year, the German coalition government has committed itself to a balanced budget. That means new supply is not going to be forthcoming. French bonds are seen as the next best alternative, and they offer a slightly higher yield to boot. Simply, if crudely put, French bonds are to German bunds, what Agency debt is to US Treasuries.
Without the push of necessity, French politicians find it difficult to do the right thing. They are reluctant to declare a break from the German ordo-liberalism's drive for fiscal austerity, but refuse to embrace it. Last month, Hollande unilaterally declared no more effort to reach the EC budget targets that had already been postponed. The EC implicitly threatened to reject it, but reports suggesting that Merkel was reluctant to push France hard, possibly fearing to do to the AfD, what Cameron has done for the UKIP.
Instead, the EC accepted some cockamamie sleight of hand. France would cut its structural deficit by 0.5% instead of 0.2% as Hollande initially proposed. This would be accomplished by 1) assuming lower debt servicing costs, 2) reducing its EU budget contribution, 3) proposing nearly a billion euro savings from a crackdown on tax evasion. Recall that Brussels had expected, and France had previously agreed to a 0.8% reduction in its structural deficit.
Perhaps Merkel was worried about the rise of the National Front in France. Le Pen embraces the social welfare state of France. It sees the biggest threat to it, not coming from the discipline being imposed by what Thomas Friedman has called the "golden straightjacket", but by the encroachment of French sovereignty. The culprit is the German fist inside the EC glove and enshrined in the monetary union.
Yet the leaders of France's main political parties are doing more to boost the National Front than anyone, including, arguably, Marine Le Pen. She often claims that there is significant collusion between the major parties. She says that the Socialists and the UMP are a single self-interested group. The developments in France this week provide her with the proverbial smoking gun.
Consider this: Hollande's chief of staff Jouyet is a personal friend of the French President. He also served in the Sarkozy government. He reportedly had lunch with Sarkozy's rival in the UMP, Fillon, who was also a prime minister in Sarkozy's government. Among the things they talked about was the investigation into overspending by the Sarkozy re-election campaign in 2012.
What are not agreed upon are the reports that suggest Fillon, threatened by Sarkozy's attempt at a political comeback, wanted the Hollande government to expedite the investigation. The idea was hit Sarkozy quickly and hard to derail his hope to be elected as the head of the UMP next month. Yet, it does seem Sarkozy himself is struggling without any help. Ever since he threw his hat in the ring, his support in the polls has deteriorated. Last month, his candidate to head the Senate lost, suggesting Sarkozy's support in the UMP is not insurmountable.
Hollande's has the lowest support of any French president since the end of WWII. He is half-way through his five-year mandate, and he recently indicated he would not seek re-election if there were no improvement in the unemployment rate. It is an idle threat. Barring a miracle, he cannot win, and the Socialist Party may dump him. We might be witnessing the slow and painful death of the Fifth Republic. The other republics ended by war or a coup, but this one may be ending due to self-immolation. The Socialist candidate who ran against Sarkozy in 2007, S. Royal, who was once Hollande's life partner, used to talk about a Sixth Republic.
Although Merkel is recognized as the outstanding leader in Europe, she is playing with a strong hand, the hand that holds the purse. France has a weak hand, and yet despite the lack of strong leadership, it has done remarkably well in pursuing its agenda. It has been given more time to reach the 3% deficit/GDP mandate. After years of complaining about the strong euro, in word and deed the ECB is now driving the euro lower.
France has wanted the ECB to pursue aggressive monetary policy, which it now is. The ECB will likely increases the range of assets it is buying under its version of QE and if may include corporate bonds. Given that the French capital markets are more developments than most in the euro area, including Germany, its corporate bond market is among the largest. Almost 45% of the corporate bonds issued by Eurozone companies are accounted for by French businesses.
After Russia occupied two areas in Georgia after the 2008 conflict, and its continuous in attempts to intimidate it neighbors, France thought it reasonable to sell Russia two ships that can be used for amphibious assaults. France has been reluctant to renege on its contract, which reportedly has penalty clauses for failure to deliver. However, within weeks of the expected delivery of the first ship, there is talk of an alternative. Reports suggest that NATO could be favorable disposed to buy the ships from France. Perhaps the logic is that it is better to own them then possibly fight against them.
Asset managers are unlikely to declare a capital strike against France. The premium France pays over Germany for 10-year money is about 36 bp presently. In the past six months, the premium has approached 30 basis point a few times, but never penetrated. The mid-September low of 31 bp was the smallest French premium in three years. This seems to be the floor.
The ceiling seems to be about 47 bp, which it neared three times in the past six months, most recently on October 20. Recall that, in the four years before the crisis, there were several occasions where the French yield dipped slightly below the German yield. In any event, pre-crisis, France did not pay more than a 10 bp premium.
Neither international capital, represented by asset managers nor the EC is going to force France to enact structural reforms. In addition, there is even less of a chance that Hollande makes a clean break and announces an aggressively pro-growth fiscal initiative. This means the continuation of the charade, yet the status quo is toxic. The political elite are committing a French version of hara-kiri. What fertile terrain for the National Front.
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The St. Francis defense had a banner afternoon Saturday in Elmhurst, leading the way to an 18-0 Suburban Christian crossover win over Immaculate Conception.
The Spartans (6-2) held the Knights to 101 yards of total offense, forced 15 negative plays from scrimmage, recovered two fumbles and added a safety for good measure.
"It's a great team effort on both sides of the ball," linebacker Jeff Rutkowski said. "Our blitzes off the outside were getting there, and our coverage was right today."
The Spartans got on the board on their second drive of the game when Dan Beck ran for an 8-yard score on fourth-and-goal to cap a seven-play, 61-yard drive. Jack Petrando added a 21-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. He finished with 156 rushing yards.
"I had huge holes to run behind, but what was more impressive was our defensive effort," Petrando said.
The defense highlighted its superb performance with a fourth-quarter safety when a swarm of Spartans, led by Rutkowski, stopped Knights quarterback Demetrius Carr for a loss on a sneak from his own 1-yard line.
Immaculate Conception (5-3) didn't reach the red zone until the fourth quarter, long after the game was well in hand.
"There's no better time to peak," said Rutkowski, alluding to the state playoffs that begin in two weeks. "We're going to make a run."
Player of the game: St. Francis defense, 15 negative plays forced, 6 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, safety.
Key performers: St. Francis — Jack Petrando, 156 rushing yards, TD; Jeff Rutkowski, 2 sacks; 41 rushing yards; Immaculate Conception — Demetrius Carr, 7-for-13, 77 yards.
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A stunning development opportunity - large building with consent to convert to a dwelling. Attractive setting. 5/6 Bedrooms. Excellent views. Exciting design. Very accessible. Near to Thorverton. Paddock. 1.7 acres.
Thorverton is a delightful and very popular Exe Valley village, which includes a primary school, two public houses, two churches, superb village hall, local cricket and football clubs, and a community shop/post office.
The area is known for unspoilt and beautiful countryside and yet Thorverton is only 7 miles from the Cathedral and University City of Exeter, which has an extensive range of facilities befitting a city of its importance. Access to the M5 motorway can be made at Junctions 27, 28, 29 & 30. Mainline railway stations on the London Paddington and Waterloo lines can be found at Exeter (Tiverton Parkway next to Junction 27 of the M5 on the Paddington line too.) Exeter International Airport lies to the east of the city.
To the north of Thorverton the market town of Tiverton has a further range of facilities, including the well renowned Blundell's School, which offers discounts to local pupils. Exeter has an excellent range of schools for all ages.
The properties location and position are superb, looking out over rolling farmland. Thorverton is within walking distance and Exeter very accessible with quick commuting access along the A396.
The plans showing the design of the property can be found on Www.middevon.gov.uk/ see below.
The accommodation is over two floors with mezzanines covering about 400 M2. It includes entrance hall, study, open plan kitchen, dining and living area, sitting room, utility, cloakroom, landing, 5 bedrooms, 4 shower/bathrooms. There is large feature glazing taking advantage of the views and looking out over the land included with the property and beyond.
Attached to the barn is a lean-to which provides garaging within the plans.
The barn is surrounded by 1.7 acres providing space to create parking and turning and garden around the property as per the consent. Beyond the garden is an area of field positioned directly behind the barn. This will enable a main aspect of the barn to look down over its land.
Change of use approval was granted on 20th December 2018 by Mid Devon District Council. Reference number 18/01620/PNCOU.
On the home page click on planning. Then click on 'search and comment on planning applications.' Then click on 'search', and then finally, in the search box, enter in the reference number 18/01620/PNCOU. The documents can be looked at by clicking on 'documents'.
The purchaser will be required to erect, as a minimum standard, a stock proof fence between points A, B and C.
Strictly by appointment via the agents, Stags, on 01884 235705.
In the centre of Thorverton turn opposite the Thorverton Arms signposted Cadbury, passing the Church on your left and proceed out of the village. After passing through the national speed limit signs take the next turning left, signposted Cadbury. Continue up the hill and down the other side and the barn will be found on the left.
Mains electricity. Purchaser to install new water supply and private drainage. The vendor will supply water for an initial period of time while the property is developed.
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LUCERNE VALLEY — A motorist on Thursday morning found the body of a bicyclist who had been struck by a hit-and-run driver the night before.
Angelo “Andy” Douglas Azzato, 47, of Lucerne Valley had been riding east on Highway 247 when he was struck from behind, San Bernardino County coroner’s officials said.
Investigators say the crash occurred either late Wednesday or early Thursday.
A passing motorist found his body on the side of the road just before 8 a.m..
Anyone with information may call the California Highway Patrol’s Victorville office, 760-241-1186.
Relatives of Azzato, who are being sought by coroner’s officials, may call 909-387-2978.
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Your reputation defines how people see you and what they will do for you. It determines whether your bank will lend you money to buy a house or car; whether your landlord will accept you as a tenant; which employers will hire you and how much they will pay you. It can even affect your marriage prospects.
And in the present Reputation Economy, it’s getting more powerful than ever. Because today, thanks to rapid advances in digital technology, anyone access huge troves of information about you your buying habits, your finances, your professional and personal networks, and even your physical whereabouts at any time. In a world where technology allows companies and individuals alike to not only gather all this data but also aggregate it and analyze it with frightening speed, accuracy, and sophistication, our digital reputations are fast becoming our most valuable currency.
Today everything depends on the social score, and everyone is desperate to move up in the rankings. But the omnipresent rating game has one big catch: ranking up is incredibly hard, while ranking down is rapid and easy, like a free-fall.Welcome to the reputation economy, where the individual social graph the social data set about each person determines one’s value in society, access to services, and employability. In this economy, reputation becomes currency.
On the web or via mobile, we can now share almost anything. The reputation economy is based on the simplistic, but effective star ratings system. Anyone who’s ever rated their Uber driver or Airbnb host has actively participated. But what happens when algorithms, rather than humans, determine an individual’s reputation score based on multiple data sources and mathematical formulas, promising more accuracy and more flexibility via machine learning to effective star ratings system. promising more accuracy and more flexibility via machine learning?
Over 60% of companies in Malta currently use social media to screen employees. And many AI-enabled startups are competing in the HR assessment market, using AI to crawl potential candidates’ social media accounts to filter out bad fits. What unifies all current platforms is a reliance on our ability to get enough information about the person we are exchanging with to feel comfortable setting the terms on an individual basis. In other words, they are economies of reputation.
Much of the growing interest in these platforms springs from the conflicts we’re seeing in traditional markets. Lack of access to capital, slow market growth, poor employment rates all of these are driving people to find ways to leverage value from other areas of their lives.
Back In 2012, Facebook applied for a patent that would use an algorithm to assess the credit ratings of friends, as a factor in one’s eligibility to get a mortgage. And China is aiming to implement a national social score for every citizen by 2020, based on crime records, their social media, what they buy, and even the scores of their friends.
Being able to accurately or even reasonably accurately measure reputation has immense value. It makes it far easier to find suppliers or business partners and this lowering of transaction cost can create a far more fluid and efficient economy. If you are investing in or supporting small businesses especially in developing countries . It means your resources can go far further. We will increasingly have reputation scores attached to content, to publishers and to journalists, making it easier to find trustworthy information and it might even make dating a little easier. The reputation economy will increasingly drive business and society. Your reputation will precede you wherever you go.
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Runaway Entertainment is looking for an experienced Associate General Manager to work across all their productions.
Runaway Entertainment Ltd is an award-winning producing and general management company, based on Shaftesbury Avenue, in the heart of theatreland. We produce critically acclaimed and ambitious plays and musicals, working with the most exciting talents in the theatre industry. We love a challenge and are passionate about quality and innovation.
Current projects include Girl From The North Country (Toronto) and Hair (Tour General Manager), as well as many others in various stages of development. Previous shows include Guys and Dolls (Savoy Theatre, Phoenix Theatre and UK Tour), The Railway Children (King’s Cross Theatre), In The Heights (Southwark Playhouse and King’s Cross Theatre), Girl From The North Country (Old Vic, Noel Coward Theatre and Public Theater).
The Associate General Manager will report to the General Managers and provide support in the development, administration and day-to-day running of all productions. They will work closely with the General Managers and Producer to ensure the smooth running of each show. The successful candidate will have at least three years relevant general management experience in a theatre producing environment, excellent organisational and communication skills and strong attention to detail.
For more information please see the attached job description.
Please send your CV and a cover letter of no more than two A4 sides outlining how you meet the requirements of the role by email via the button below. The closing date for applications is 6pm on Friday 1st March 2019.
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The Rolling Stones' US tour is likely to take place in July, following news that Mick Jagger had to postpone 17 dates due to ill health.
The band are working with promoters to reschedule the shows, amid reports that Jagger will have heart surgery later this week.
"I really hate letting you down like this," tweeted the star after the tour was postponed at the weekend.
"I will be working very hard to be back on stage as soon as I can."
US gossip website Drudge Report was the first to report that Jagger would need surgery to replace a heart valve. The story was subsequently confirmed by US music magazine Rolling Stone.
The 75-year-old is expected to make a full recovery and return to touring this summer.
"We're beginning to look at the rescheduling options and we're going to try and do this as quickly as we can," said John Meglen, of the Stones' promoters Concerts West.
"Everyone's health and happiness comes first," he told Billboard, adding that new dates could be announced "in the next couple of weeks."
The US leg of the band's No Filter tour was expected to kick off in Miami's Hard Rock Stadium on 20 April; wrapping up two months later in Ontario, Canada.
Fellow Stone Keith Richards tweeted following the postponement, "A big disappointment for everyone but things need to be taken care of and we will see you soon. Mick, we are always there for you!"
Band-mate Ronnie Wood added, "We'll miss you over the next few weeks, but we're looking forward to seeing you all again very soon. Here's to Mick - thanks for your supportive messages. It means so much to us."
Although the main shows will all be rescheduled, the band's headline performance at the New Orleans Jazz Festival has been cancelled, with organisers currently seeking a replacement.
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BLAKELY, Pa. --More than 170,000 pounds of food was handed out to those in need in Lackawanna County.
Newswatch 16 found cars lined up outside Peckville Assembly of God Church waiting to take advantage of the generosity.
The church gave out hundreds of hams, turkeys and other meat as well as fresh produce and toiletries.
"I do not know how to explain it to you but the food helps me pay medical bills because I save money here and I pay my bills, ya know?" said William Carter of Dickson City.
Peckville Assembly of God Church gives out free food every Friday.
Anyone who lives in Lackawanna County can sign up.
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“We’re too close not to share resources and promote each other,” Keyserling said.
Plans are still being made by city event staff and its cultural district board for the expanded Taste of Beaufort, which will be held at various venues downtown May 3-4.
Keyserling said the collaboration would pull from the Piccolo Spoleto festival, a companion event run by the city of Charleston to the better-known, 17-day international Spoleto festival held in the city each year.
Plans come as Beaufort and the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce spar in federal court over control of the city’s popular festivals, including Taste of Beaufort.
The nonprofit business group sued the city last year over ownership and operation of the Beaufort Shrimp Festival and Taste of Beaufort, saying its constitutional rights were violated when it was denied a permit in July to operate the shrimp event and objecting to the city registering the names of both festivals with the state.
City officials have said chamber leadership has been unwilling to reach a solution.
Beaufort employed downtown events staff to organize a promote what the city billed as a bigger and better Beaufort Shrimp Festival in October.
Keyserling’s announcement of the Spoleto partnership in his weekly newsletter told visitors to prepare for “a better than ever” Taste of Beaufort.
Tecklenburg and Keyserling have been allies on several recent issues affecting both coastal areas, including opposing offshore oil drilling and exploration and planning for rising sea levels. Beaufort has also patterned its technology incubator, the Beaufort Digital Corridor, after a successful initiative in Charleston.
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Australian internet users were the big losers from today's NBN Co deal with Telstra, according to opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull, as it condemns them to pay high broadband prices.
The $11 billion deal with Telstra paved the way for accelerated rollout of the national fibre network.
But Turnbull said the deal served only Telstra and the Government's interests.
"The deal will have damaging consequences for consumers – that is, every Australian that purchases broadband or telephony services during the next decade," Turnbull said.
"The NBN Co corporate plan makes it clear that broadband prices will be high and stay high."
In addition, the sell-off of Telstra and Optus' HFC networks would remove the only networks that could have competed with NBN Co's services to keep prices low, he said.
Turnbull continued to push the Coalition's line that options should have been built into the Telstra deal to give NBN Co access to copper should a "future Government" decide to can FTTP in favour of an FTTN architecture.
The suggestion didn't find favour with the Greens.
"Today we heard the opposition communications spokesperson claimed that if elected, the Coalition will leave those parts of the NBN already existing intact, but that the remainder of the network would be a hodgepodge of Fibre to the Node (FTTN), wireless and Fibre to the Premises – a flawed model which was roundly rejected in the 2010 election campaign," Greens Senator Scott Ludlam said.
"This suggestion has nothing to do with communications reform".
Ludlam said the Opposition had been delaying the NBN for a year, "hysterically predicting doomsday scenarios for the sector."
He said constructive input on telecommunications reform from the Opposition would be welcome but none had eventuated.
Telecommunications analyst Paul Budde said the deal was structured in such a way that it would be difficult for a Coalition Government, if elected, to roll it back.
"In our eyes the future of the NBN looks now secured," Budde said. "The Opposition Shadow Minister Malcolm Turnbull has already indicated that he is not going to turn the clock back, but he of course is still planning changes if they would win the next elections.
"It will be difficult for any government to renege on the broadband services that are now staring to emerge in the first release sites around the country, once people started to get a better understanding what this will mean for them, few people in regional or rural areas will accept a second class solution for them, simply because that is cheaper."
Ovum consulting director Nigel Pugh said that while there had "always been an overhang to the deal with regards to a change of government", the analyst firm's "initial reading of the cessation clauses don't position this deal as a poison pill if there is a change of government at the next election."
The Australian Information Industry Association welcomed the deal, with the proviso that it renewed the "imperative [of business] to act quickly to seize the opportunities it presents."
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Question: What's one company culture characteristic that you have found makes your startup employees the happiest? How do you make sure you're implementing it?
"Every six weeks, we have scheduled, highly structured bi-directional reviews with every employee. The predictability and structure of these meetings make it extremely easy for employees to deliver feedback, both good and bad. This level of transparency and communication keeps employees happy and motivated."
"At RTC, we have a motto as a publisher: "Don't expect your reader to change through reading your book if you haven't changed through writing it." That motto defines our core belief that continual growth is necessary for the human spirit to regularly experience joy in the workplace. As a result, our executive team strives to help our staff remove aspects of their work that do not bring them joy so that they can focus on what they love doing. By intentionally making room for them to focus on what they enjoy, they are able to grow out aspects of the business that bring them deep personal satisfaction while also serving our clients. We've developed entire new lines of business this way, as well as new positions within the company. Support their dreams, and they will grow your business."
Follow Rule #2: Have Fun!
"When my co-founder and I started 'ZinePak, our business plan read simply, "Make money. Have fun." As the company has grown, we've made sure not to lose sight of this mission. At the end of each day, we ask our employees if they had fun that day. Almost without fail, the answer is always "yes." We try to always remember that we're an entertainment company. We aren't changing the world. We aren't curing cancer. No one's life is at risk, so there is no need for the doom-and-gloom culture that seems so prevalent in Corporate America. From half-day Fridays to candy jars to days off for charitable activities of the employee's choice, we try to mix "fun" into everything possible to ensure that work feels as much like play as possible."
"We always take time to celebrate our wins. Whether it's a new project, new teammate or new launch, we take time to recognize team and individual successes. Taking small breaks to socialize and catch up at team happy hours reenergizes the team and ultimately leads to awesome workflow and collaboration. Our internal party planning committee makes consistent plans to pull us away from our desks and into fun environments where we can take our minds off work for a bit."
"I think that people are generally happiest at work when they are engaged by the work that they do. Doing the same jobs, having the same responsibilities and facing the same tasks day in and day out can get tiresome. In my company, there is a variety of work to be done, and employees are encouraged to embrace the variety. This keeps work fresh. We also support telecommuting (to the degree that we don't even have a "home" office -- all work is done "off-site") and flexible schedules. We trust our team to do their work when they can and where they can. Work variety and flexible work results in employees who are happy and productive. "
"When we started, we had been told to be careful of what we share with our employees and other stakeholders. We, however, are very open and transparent communicators and did not keep anything confidential and didn't hold back any information. This allowed our early employees to not only feel like they were playing an important trusted role in making an impact on growing the company, but also allowed them to dissent and suggest better ways of accomplishing objectives. They respected the founders because they saw not just what decisions we made, but how we made them, right or wrong. And for failed experiments, we had their support and morale to pivot quickly. Each and everyone felt individual ownership for each decision and worked that much harder to succeed, because they never felt separate."
"Every other Friday, someone different leads our team workout. We've played tennis and basketball, done yoga and CrossFit and even learned (barely) various martial arts. Unintentionally, we've taken risks doing new things, discussed how we're improving our lives (not just our work) and laughed a lot. The benefits of exercise combined with the additional vulnerability, camaraderie and fun has increased the happiness quotient of Team Fig. "
"When people hear the words "company culture," they often think about ping pong tables or beer taps. While those sorts of perks are cool, they really don't matter unless you've created the right work environment to embrace them. You create that environment by giving people a voice. When we built our new corporate office space, it was very important to solicit opinions and ideas from our employees. Before moving into our new facility in 2011, we hosted an internal version of Pinterest where employees could put ideas and pictures that they felt should be considered for the new space and workstation setups. In the end, when you're making a decision based on democratic feedback, you need transparency. People will be invested in the outcome as long as they feel like the process is fair. "
"The characteristic that I swear by is living the mission every day. Oftentimes, people join your team/company as a startup because you are doing something different or you're doing something the way no one has done it before. You cannot afford to lose that, and you have to live that everyday. For us, that is our mission. Everyone who has joined our team is in it for the mission, and we push it and live it every day, which makes our team members happy. "
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Fisher-Price issued a recall of 4.7 million Rock ‘n Play Sleepers Friday after multiple infants were found to have died while the product was in use.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Division’s website, 30 infant fatalities have occurred when infants rolled over while unrestrained “or other circumstances” since the product was introduced in 2009.
Consumers are advised to stop using the sleepers immediately and contact Fisher-Price for a refund or voucher.
Rock ‘n Play Sleepers were sold at major retailers for between $40 and $49.
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This full stratified home has a 2 level main home and fully contained suite on the walkout lower level! Great investment or revenue opportunity; or choose your unit and sell the other! Excellent quiet location on the Knoll at Silver Star Mountain Resort with the ski-way out your back door. Beautiful Monashee Mountain views! Well layed-out floor plan with a common entry and shared double garage. Both units enjoy in-floor hot water heat, private hot tubs with shower rooms, private laundry and a full ensuite with every bedroom! The main house features a large private entry/ski storage with access to the hot tub, sauna and shower room. Great room concept living area with a grand river rock gas fireplace, 2 story windows and soaring ceilings in the living room to the upper level. The kitchen has stainless appliances and casual eating bar while the dining area will accommodate your large gatherings. 3 Bedrooms and 3 baths on the upper level including the master which has mountain views and ensuite featuring a soaker tub and separate shower. Lockable owner storage off the laundry room. The lower suite presents 2 bedrooms, 2 baths and generous open concept living with gas fireplace in the living room, a large island in the kitchen with eating bar and level walkout to the hot tub.
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(Conakry) – The fifth anniversary on September 28, 2014, of the Conakry stadium massacre should be the last before justice is done, seven Guinean and international organizations, in unity with the victims, said today. More than 150 people were killed, some 100 women were raped and several hundred people were injured on September 28, 2009, as government troops attacked peaceful demonstrators.
Since legal proceedings began in February 2010, close to 400 victims have been interviewed by the judges leading the case. But only eight people have been charged, though offenses were committed by scores of members of the armed forces, particularly the Red Berets. The military junta in power at the time of the massacre was headed by Moussa Dadis Camara.
There has been real progress in justice in recent months, the groups said. The establishment of a High Judicial Council in July, the ongoing improvement in the status of judges and the start of justice reform are all likely to help the judges complete their work.
There has been some progress in the legal case in recent weeks, including questioning of the director of Conakry stadium, the former Minister for Youth and Sport and, through an international rogatory commission, Dadis Camara, who has taken refuge in Burkina Faso. These new developments are in contrast to the slow pace that long characterized the proceedings.
Administering justice for the victims is all the more urgent because scores of victims have died in the past five years from their injuries or disease without being vindicated, the groups said.
Despite the government’s stated commitments, a lack of financial and political support has been a major obstacle to the progress of the investigation. The government needs to guarantee that all of the people summoned for questioning, including members of the security forces, regardless of their rank, answer the summonses issued by the judges. On several occasions, despite repeated summonses, the judges have not been able to interview people summoned for questioning about the events of September 28, 2009.
The International Criminal Court (ICC), which opened a preliminary examination on October 14, 2009, and which is continuing to monitor this case closely, has already alerted the national authorities to the need to conduct these proceedings within a reasonable time frame.
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OKLAHOMA CITY - Kevin Durant scored 25 points, James Harden added a spark with 23 points off the bench while returning from an injury and the Oklahoma City Thunder ended a string of futility against the Houston Rockets with a 122-104 victory.
The Thunder got out to a sizzling start and opened a 23-point lead within the first 14 minutes. Their lead was never in jeopardy against a Houston team desperately needing a late charge to make the playoffs.
Instead, Oklahoma City used its second-best shooting performance of the season to take a big step toward solidifying its spot in the postseason.
Luis Scola scored 25 and Trevor Ariza added 20 points for Houston, which fell seven games behind Oklahoma City and 51/2 behind eighth-place Portland in the Western Conference.
BOSTON - Paul Pierce scored 27 points, Kevin Garnett had 20 and the Boston Celtics clinched a playoff berth with a win over the Denver Nuggets.
The Celtics dominated inside and the Nuggets, one day after losing to the Knicks in New York, slipped a half-game behind the Dallas Mavericks and into a third-place tie with Utah in the Western Conference with their third consecutive loss.
Boston led by 21 points twice in the third quarter before Denver cut the lead to 87-80 going into the fourth. But the Celtics stayed ahead by seven to 16 the rest of the way for their fifth win in six games. Rajon Rondo had a triple-double with 11 points, 15 assists and 11 rebounds.
Carmelo Anthony led Denver with 32 points and J.R. Smith added 21.
TORONTO - Deron Williams had 18 points, 16 assists and eight rebounds, leading the Utah Jazz to victory over the Toronto Raptors.
Carlos Boozer added 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Mehmet Okur and rookie Wesley Matthews had 16 points apiece for the Jazz, who won their third straight. Seven Jazz players finished with at least 12 points.
Chris Bosh celebrated his 26th birthday with a 20-point performance for the Raptors (35-35), who fell 11/2 games behind Charlotte and Miami in the race for sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
Antoine Wright had 10 of his 15 points in the second quarter for the Raptors, while Andrea Bargnani added 12 and Jose Calderon 10.
ATLANTA - Josh Smith swooped in to slam through Joe Johnson's missed shot just ahead of the buzzer and the Atlanta Hawks finally beat the Orlando Magic, clinching a third straight trip to the playoffs.
The Hawks bounced back from an early 15-2 deficit and overcame going 8:45 in the fourth quarter without a field goal against a division rival that had routed them three times this season. For Atlanta, it came down to the final shot of regulation for the fifth straight game.
INDIANAPOLIS - Danny Granger scored 31 points to help the Indiana Pacers beat the Washington Wizards and extend Washington's losing streak to a franchise record-tying 13 games.
Andray Blatche started for the Wizards a night after he was benched for most of the game following a spat with coach Flip Saunders.
The Wizards last lost 13 straight in 1995. They can set a record for futility Friday at Charlotte.
It was Granger's third straight game with at least 30 points. Josh McRoberts had 14 points and a career-high 12 rebounds for the Pacers, who have won four in a row overall and six straight at home.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Stephen Jackson shook off a sore hand and busted out of his shooting slump with 37 points, leading the Charlotte Bobcats past Minnesota to send the reeling Timberwolves to their 14th straight loss.
Jackson, who a night earlier revealed he had been plagued by a bruised ligament near his left index finger, hit 15-of-24 shots after shooting 37 percent in the previous 10 games. Gerald Wallace added 23 points as the Bobcats shot 54 percent from the field and moved into sixth place in the Eastern Conference with their sixth straight home win.
Al Jefferson scored 21 points for the Timberwolves, who came apart in a 20-0 Charlotte run in the second quarter to drop to 5-32 on the road.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Brook Lopez had 26 points and 13 rebounds, and New Jersey Nets moved a step closer to avoiding a dubious date with NBA history by beating the Sacramento Kings to snap an eight-game losing streak and a franchise-record, 14-game skid at home.
Devin Harris added 24 points and nine assists for the Nets (8-63), who need to win once in their last 11 games to avoid breaking the league mark for fewest wins in a season (9-73), set by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1972-73.
Nets interim coach Kiki Vandeweghe guided the team despite learning of the death of his mother, former Miss America Colleen Kay Hutchins, earlier in the day.
Beno Udrih had 19 points for the Kings, who lost the eighth time in 11 games.
MILWAUKEE - Rookie Jrue Holiday had 15 points and seven assists, leading the Philadelphia 76ers to a victory over the Bucks that snapped Milwaukee's longest home winning streak in six years at eight games.
It was a dismal display for Milwaukee, which had won 15 of the last 17 to virtually assure a postseason berth for the first time since 2006.
Instead, Samuel Dalembert had 12 points and 10 rebounds, Willie Green scored 16 points and Andre Iguodala 14 as the Sixers poured it on for their third win in the last 16 games.
Jerry Stackhouse scored 15 points and rookie Brandon Jennings added 12 for Milwaukee, but the Bucks shot 5 of 28 from 3-point range and led only once in the game, 3-0.
NEW ORLEANS - LeBron James scored an efficient 38 points on 15 of 22 shooting to go with nine assists, and the Cleveland Cavaliers won their eighth straight game, over the New Orleans Hornets.
J.J. Hickson scored 20 for the Cavs, who led by as many as 17 and never trailed after James' floater tied it at 10 in the first quarter. Delonte West added 15 points and Antawn Jamison had 11 points and 11 rebounds as Cleveland won its 27th straight over a team with a losing record.
Marcus Thornton scored 20 points and Darren Collison added 17 for the Hornets, who will be eliminated from the playoffs if Portland wins today. David West added 16 points.
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These two healthcare REITs are trading for dirt-cheap valuations despite high dividends and a solid history of growth.
Investing in real estate investment trusts, or REITs, is one of the best ways to enjoy high dividends and the potential for capital growth. On a valuation basis, REITs specializing in healthcare properties are trading cheaply right now, and two seem to be a particularly good bargain: HCP Inc. (NYSE:HCP) and Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW).
This type of real estate should be an excellent long-term investment for three main reasons: demographics, increased healthcare spending, and market opportunity.
Demographics indicate a growing demand for healthcare properties over the coming decades. Simply put, the population is getting older -- fast. The 65-and-up population in the U.S. is expected to nearly double by 2050 as baby boomers age and live longer. Older individuals require more healthcare, therefore the number of healthcare facilities will grow to meet the demand.
Furthermore, healthcare costs are rising at a faster rate than other expenditures, as you can see in the chart below. Given that commercial properties derive most of their value from their ability to generate rental income, healthcare properties should appreciate faster than other property types as long as this trend continues.
Finally, the healthcare real estate market is about $1 trillion in size, and no REIT has more than a 3% market share. The industry is highly fragmented, meaning there are plenty of opportunities for new investments from existing properties, in addition to the opportunities that will come from future growth of the industry.
HCP is one of the "big three" healthcare REITs, and it owns 1,179 properties in a variety of categories -- mainly senior housing, post-acute care, life science, and medical office buildings. Essentially, the business model is to acquire attractive properties and team up with some of the best operating partners in the business, such as Brookdale Senior Living.
The company pays a notable 7.1% dividend yield and has an even more impressive record of dividend growth. In fact, HCP has increased its dividend for 31 consecutive years and is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats.
HCP's biggest recent news item is the planned spinoff of its HCR ManorCare assets, which include virtually all of the post-acute/skilled-nursing properties in the company's portfolio. You can have an in-depth look at the spinoff, but the general goal is to allow HCP to focus on its private-pay senior housing, life science, and medical office properties, thereby improving portfolio quality and giving the company more financial flexibility to pursue future growth opportunities. The spun-off assets, meanwhile, will be placed in a newly created REIT that will strive to maximize their value.
According to HCP, once this happens, the company can employ several new strategies with these properties, including some that are not possible or practical while the assets are still a part of HCP.
Data source: HCP company presentation.
Medical Properties Trust focuses on hospital properties, which, according to the company, produce better initial yields than other types of healthcare real estate. In fact, the company is the fourth-largest owner of for-profit hospital beds in the country.
Data source: Medical Properties Trust.
The company has 204 properties located in 29 states and four foreign countries, and the long-term plan calls for even further international diversification. This way, if one market faces headwinds (say, the U.S.), it won't represent virtually all of Medical Properties' assets.
The company does have a relatively high debt load for a REIT: Debt represents 51.6% of Medical Properties' assets, so there's added risk to consider. However, 98% of the portfolio's leases have annual rent increases built in, and the company's payout ratio is less than two-thirds of FFO -- lower than that of most peers.
In short, there's no reason to believe Medical Properties Trust will have any debt-related issues going forward, with a growing stream of income that's already more than enough to cover the dividend.
Note: Share prices and guidance are current as of 5/23/16. Normalized or adjusted FFO guidance is used when available.
No stock with double-digit growth potential is without risk, and these two are certainly no exception. In fact, a higher level of perceived risk is responsible for the low valuations. Healthcare spending could slow, operating partners could face greater financial difficulties, or there could be a shortage of attractive acquisition opportunities in the target property types. Any one of these factors could cause these stocks to take a dive.
However, I think the growth potential and the solid track record of delivering profits in a variety of economic climates more than make up for the risks. Either of these healthcare REITs would make a solid addition to a well-diversified dividend growth portfolio.
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Michael Novak, writing for National Review, admits that he is taken aback by some of the harsh criticisms of Pope Francis coming from American conservatives. Novak—who for decades has been the leading Catholic defender of the free-enterprise system—offers his own gentle suggestions that the current Pontiff should recall the teachings of Blessed John Paul II, especially in Centesimus Annus. At the same time, Novak expresses delight with the overall thrust of Evangelii Gaudium, acknowledging that Americans can learn a great deal from our new Pontiff.
The Financial Times provides some useful background on the struggle toward transparency at the Vatican bank-- a timely piece, in light of today’s news that European banking examiners have given a positive report on the Vatican’s financial reforms.
And finally, immodestly, I point to my friend Robert Royal’s kind and insightful review of When Faith Goes Viral, a collection of reports on successful initiatives in evangelization, which I had the pleasure of editing.
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The Moto Z2 Play and Z2 Force give you maximum customization at a minimal price.
WiredYou won't find mods as useful or well-designed on other phones. Motorola's gestures are handy. Fantastic battery life, especially on the Moto Z2 Play. Storage is expandable via MicroSD.
TiredWhere's the waterproofing? The Z2 Force has no headphone jack. The best Moto Mods are pricey, as are these phones. The cameras are acceptable, but still need work.
A lot of Android phones claim to be different, but Motorola’s Z series backs up that claim. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the Moto Z phones have something that other phones just don’t. The new Moto Z2 Force and Moto Z2 Play have magnetic Mods that snap onto the back of them, adding new features. What you think about those Mods will determine whether either of the two Moto Z2 phones are right for you.
Whatever you’re doing, Moto wants to have a Mod for that. Snap on a battery pack if you’re going off grid, or maybe a 360-degree camera so you can capture everything on that nature hike. Pop on a speaker and you can pump up the jams, or attach Motorola’s brand new Polaroid printer Mod that lets you instantly print out any photo you take. You can even buy a Mod that turns your phone into an Amazon Echo speaker, complete with a glowing blue ring.
There are more than a dozen of these Mods, and they all magnetically cling to the back of the rather svelte Z2, which feels almost too thin and flat without one. Moto Mods are the defining reason to buy a Moto Z2 Play and its more expensive sibling, the Z2 Force. But they don’t come cheap. Many of these doodads cost upward of a hundred bucks.
My Moto Z2s have worn a lot of Mods in the last few weeks. I found most of them fun, but I didn’t want to keep any of them snapped on forever. Many of them make the phone a little too fat. My favorite was a battery pack, which I kept in my back and snapped on whenever I had a long day ahead of me. Oddly, I rarely needed it. Both the Z2 Force and Play get excellent battery life without augmentation. I was able to use the Z2 Play for two days straight after forgetting to charge it, though it was gasping for a charge by the second evening. That kind of battery life is hard to come by these days.
Both Moto Z2 phones are nearly identical from the outside. They have large glass 5.5-inch screens above a nice fingerprint sensor. The sides and back are smooth, brushed aluminum with a large circular bump for the rear camera. Ridges on the power button make it easy to distinguish from the volume keys, all of which sit on the right side of the phone. Charging via the USB C slot on the bottom is also pretty standard.
Initially, I was bothered by how flat the back of the phone feels. It doesn’t contour to your palm like some phones. After a few days, I got used to it and now appreciate how thin these phones feel, though I still recommend a bumper case, like this one from Lenovo.
Setting aside the lack of waterproofing on either phone, the only problem with the design is that it’s large for one-handed use. This is an extra-large phone, and if that bothers you, consider the smaller and cheaper Moto X4.
Both phones also run Motorola’s slight twist on Android 7 Nougat (the new Android 8 Oreo is promised, but not out yet). Most of what’s here is identical to other Android phones, but there are a few Moto Action gestures that I like to use. You can twist the phone to open the camera and swipe it down and up like you’re swinging an ax to turn on and off the flashlight. Even better are the home button gestures, which let you dump the onscreen back, home, and multitasking buttons in favor of swiping left, right, and pressing on the home button. It takes a good day to get used to it, but swiping is very intuitive, and a great reason to stick with a phone with a home button fingerprint sensor, like this one.
The 12-megapixel rear cameras perform similarly, as well. I snapped some lovely night photos on a trip to New York City, and the camera did a decent job balancing dark areas and bright Christmas light displays at Saks Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center. The Moto Z2 Play has been my go-to camera for three weeks now. Despite what feels like a second of lag when pressing the shutter button, it hasn’t hampered my ability to take timely shots. The 5-megapixel front camera on each is decent, but has had some trouble in low-light situations. The rear camera’s 4K (30fps) video support is also nice. If you’re picky about your photos though, neither of these can match the shooters on the new iPhone X or Pixel 2.
Both Z2 models will work on most wireless carriers, have 64GB storage (with MicroSD slots), and 4GB of RAM. Still, there are a few vital differences between these phones that I’m going to sum up quickly.
The Z2 Force is the fancier $720 version. It has an extra rear camera (that, to be honest, does not add a whole lot to the experience), a cutting-edge Snapdragon 835 processor (this does speed the phone up substantially if you use intense apps or games), and a higher-resolution Quad HD screen that will supposedly withstand falls better. It also comes with a "Shattershield" screen cover stuck on it that’s sharp around the edges. What you lose is a headphone jack and a few hours of battery life. It’s also imperceptibly thicker.
The Moto Z2 Play has a weaker Snapdragon 626 processor, larger battery, FM radio, and standard HD screen. I was legitimately shocked when I found out both screens had a different resolution, which shows just how adequate a 1080p screen still is. Both Super AMOLED displays look excellent.
I still like having a headphone jack and the slightly slower performance of the Moto Z2 Play is an easy tradeoff for the savings. The $500 64GB Unlocked version of the Moto Z2 Play is my favorite model (linked in the Buy buttons on this review), though there is a Verizon-only edition for $408.
There are a few truly high-end phones you can buy for $500 or less, like the OnePlus 5T or Essential Phone, but neither of them have Moto Mods. That’s the reason to choose a Moto Z phone.
The 64GB Unlocked Moto Z2 Play is a fantastic phone, if Moto Mods interest you. If they don’t, I can’t help but direct you to the other Moto in the room, the Moto X4.
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The Las Vegas real estate market got a small reprieve in February; with sales volume at a four-year high for the month and a dip in foreclosure resales helping prices increase slightly from January. A total of 3,698 new and existing houses and condos were sold in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area in February, according to MDA DataQuick. That’s up 9.8% from January and 10.5% from one year ago. A 5.7% increase from January to February is the average, dating back to 1994, DataQuick said. The February 2010 total was the highest for the month since 2006, when 6,065 homes were sold, but 2% below the 16-year average February sales total. It’s the 18th straight month that total sales rose year-over-year. Existing home sales totaled 3,311, up 7.1% from January and up 9.5% from last year. It’s the highest total for February existing sales since 2005. Existing home sales are on a 22-month-long run of monthly year-over-year increases. Foreclosure resales accounted for 59.6% of all resales in February, down from 62% in January and down from 70.6% last year. After peaking in April 2009 at 73.7%, foreclosure resales have declined every month. While foreclosure resales were down, foreclosure proceedings were up. In February, 1,756 homes and condos were foreclosed on in Las Vegas, up 5.3% from January, but down 52.8% from 3,718 foreclosures last year. New home sales totaled 387 in February, up 40% from January and up 20.2% from last year, but it was one of the slowest February sales totals in DataQuick’s 16 years of records, second only to last year. The decline in foreclosure resales and the increase in new home sales helped the median price increase from January, but only slightly. The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the Las Vegas metro area in February was $126,197, up 0.4% from $125,750 in January but down 17.2% from $152,500 a year earlier. DataQuick said the year-over-year decline was the smallest since March 2008, when the median dropped 16% from a year earlier, to $247,925. In addition, sales of homes over $200,000 made up 22.4% of total sales, up from 21.3% in January but down from 30.8% a year earlier. The median sales price is on a 34-month-long run of monthly year-over-year declines and in February 2010, was 59.6% below the peak median of $312,000 in November 2006. The median price for single-family homes was $133,800 in February, down from $135,000 in January and down from $157,000 last year. The median condo sales price was $69,000, even from January, but down 9.2% from $76,000 last year. Nearly half — 49.8% — of borrowers that used mortgages to fund home purchases used government-backed Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. Cash buyers accounted for 51.5% of all February sales, up from 50.4% in January. DataQuick defines cash borrowers as those purchases where there was no indication of a purchase mortgage recorded at the time of sale, but can include those that used alternative financing arrangements and in some cases borrowers might be taking out mortgages after their purchases. Absentee buyers, usually investors, but anyone who indicates at the time of sale that the property tax bill will go to a different address, accounted for 44.6% of all Las Vegas area home sales. However, house flipping declined. Homes sold in February that had previously sold in the past three weeks to six months accounted for 3.7% of all sales, down from 5% in January, but up from 2.6% last year. Write to Austin Kilgore.
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Two recently published reports shed damning light on the high cost of low wages in the fast food industry – an industry dominated by the restaurant giant McDonald’s, which raked-in over $5.4 billion in profits last year.
The reports – Super Sizing Public Costs: How Low Wages at Top Fast-Food Chains Leave Taxpayers Footing the Bill and Fast Food, Poverty Wages: The Public Cost of Low-Wage Jobs in the Fast-Food Industry – argue that low-wages in the fast-food industry cost taxpayers nearly $7 billion annually.
Medicaid and CHIP (the Children’s Health Insurance Program) account for more than half of the $7 billion, at an average of $3.9 billion annually. Additionally, due to low earnings, fast food workers’ families also receive an annual average of $1.04 billion in food stamp benefits and $1.91 billion in Earned Income Tax Credit payments.
The ten largest fast-food companies alone made more than $7.4 billion in profits in 2012 and paid their top executives more than $53 million in compensation.
Low-wage fast-food jobs cost tax-payers the most in California ($717 million), New York ($708 million), Texas ($556 million), Illinois ($368 million), and Florida ($348 million).
According to Super Sizing Public Costs, “McDonald’s represents the most costly fast-food company for tax-payers.” Low wages and lack of benefits at McDonald’s cost tax-payers “$1.2 billion every year in public assistance programs,” according to the report.
YUM! Brands (Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC), Subway, Burger King and Wendy’s round-out the top five fast-food companies with workers who rely on public assistance.
The median average wage for fast-food workers is $8.69; an estimated 87 percent of fast-food workers do not receive health benefits. Furthermore, 67 percent of front-line fast-food workers are adults 20 and older; 68 percent are the main earners in their families and more than one-quarter are raising children.
“This business model puts tax-payers on the hook, while rewarding corporate CEO’s,” Jack Temple, a policy analyst for the National Employment Law Project and co-author of Super Sizing Public Costs, said during a conference call with the press on October 15.
The reports come on the heels of a nation-wide wave of fast-food worker strikes; most recently strikes took place in over 60 cities across the nation with thousands of fast-food workers walking off their jobs.
“The CEO of McDonald’s makes more in a day than I make in a year,” Yates added.
Fast-food workers nationally are calling for $15 an-hour in pay and the right to form or join a union without retaliation.
Jacobs also addressed the wave of non-traditional worker organizing taking place in fast-food, retail and other low-wage service sector jobs.
Super Sizing Public Costs: How Low Wages at Top Fast-Food Chains Leave Taxpayers Footing the Bill was published by the National Employment Law Project and Fast Food, Poverty Wages: The Public Cost of Low-Wage Jobs in the Fast-Food Industry was published by the University of California Labor Center.
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Readers may be familiar with the fundamental changes that took place in the Roman world as it converted from paganism to Christianity in the fourth century, and as its emperors sought to govern, through the turbulent times of the fifth to seventh centuries, as Christian rulers.
This is the stuff of late antiquity as it would be recognised in any classics or history university department. It is, as Tom Holland points out in the opening pages of his latest book, a period of fundamental importance for the shape of our world, as it is the era in which religious monotheism, rather than political kingdom, comes to dominate history.
In that context, Holland focuses on the birth of Islam through the prophet Mohammed in Mecca and Medina (modern-day Saudi Arabia) during the course of the seventh century, as it is told to us by one of Mohammed’s biographers, Ibn Hisham, in the ninth century. The faith of Islam, as Holland points out, is centred on the study and strict observation of both the divine revelations to Mohammed (the Koran), and how Mohammed acted during his lifetime (the Hadith and the Sunna).
Yet, echoing what many (mostly non-Muslim) scholars have queried before, Holland points to the historical problem of the evidence: before 800AD, almost 200 years after Mohammed’s death in 632AD, the only “traces we possess” for the development of Islam “are either the barest shreds of shreds, or else the delusory shimmering of mirages”.
Holland examines late antiquity not as an age of decline and fall, but of energy and inventiveness, setting the Arab world and Mohammed’s life in the context of the changing geographies, cultures and priorities of the empires of Rome around the Mediterranean, the Sassanians to the East, and the religious and cultural melting-pot of the “Holy Land”, which connected them. Holland identifies key events, places, ideas and decisions within the Persian and Roman systems which may have impacted upon the Arab world, and, in turn, on the birthplace of Islam in Mecca and Medina.
In so doing, Holland argues for the forging of Islam in the political and military instability and opportunity of a world convulsed by a changing balance of power. The process, he continues, ensured that, by the ninth century, “a version of Islam’s beginnings that gave no scope for anyone to rule as a Deputy of God”, and in turn no room “for acknowledging the momentous role in the forging of Islam by countless others”, had gained acceptance, the continued presence of which, inevitably, makes Holland’s thesis difficult reading for an Islamic audience.
Focusing on the wider context to unpick key moments in history is a classic Holland approach, echoing, for example, his study of the fifth century BC Persian invasion of Greece in Persian Fire (2005), which explored the context and prior history of the Persian and Greek worlds. Such an approach is now in vogue, because it demands that the historian break the often stifling disciplinary boundaries that have traditionally governed the study of worlds which knew no such boundaries.
This is a handsome volume, tackling an important question from a novel perspective, backed by useful notes and written in an accessible and fluid style. But, as I am sure Holland would accept, in part because of the charged nature of the material and issues on which it dwells, and in part because of the vast developments and arenas it attempts to encompass, it is also bound to encounter the full spectrum of critical reaction.
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Madore received the package along with three crosses she had ordered in memory of her son Christopher Medina who died July 15, 2009, in a traffic accident along the Carson River.
She purchased the crosses from Harriet Carter, a Pennsylvania mail order company.
“I gave one to Christopher’s father, to his grandmother, to my best friend, and kept one for myself,” Madore said.
The crosses arrived individually boxed with Christopher’s name on the outside.
Madore didn’t open the fourth box until she went to the site of the accident near the old power dam to place it with other items honoring her son’s memory.
“At first, I was very, very, very upset, so devastated. Then I got this really weird feeling. It was like angels – or maybe Chris – had to let me know this little girl needed to be remembered,” Madore said.
She contacted the company the next day, but was unable to find out who ordered the cross for Holly or what happened to the fourth memorial she ordered for her son.
“When I called the company, they said I should just throw Holly’s away, but I’m not going to do that,” she said.
Over the next several weeks, Madore said she made nearly 20 telephone calls across the country and used the Internet, Facebook, MySpace and every social network she could think of to try to track down the girl’s family.
She left several telephone messages, but no one called her back.
If she can’t find whoever ordered the memorial, Madore said she would place it next to her son’s cross which the company replaced.
“Chris was always very compassionate, and he would be OK with having her cross next to his,” Madore said.
Madore said the experience has taught her another lesson.
“It was an awakening to me and a reminder that I am not the only parent who lost a child. My heart goes out to her family. She’s just a little lost soul,” Madore said.
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Even if you’re not at risk of dying, you can still get other people sick.
The number of people who died from the flu in the 2017-2018 season.
Estrada Anton // Shutterstock - Even if you will not die from flu, your actions affect others.
It feels like up until a couple years ago, the accepted line about the flu shot was that you only needed it if you were a) young, b) old, or c) sick, and that maybe it didn’t work that well anyway because it only protects against certain (the most common) strains. Millennials received this info gratefully; finally, a thing we were not responsible for, an errand we did not actually have to do. Unfortunately, this is wrong; in fact, everyone should get the flu shot.
Last year’s flu season was the worst in a decade, worse than the year of swine flu. Over 80,000 people died. There are many factors at work, but a big one that medical professionals attributed to the unusually high rate of deaths and infections was a drop in the rate of adults who bothered to get their shot — yes, those same people between the ages of 18 and 65 who “don’t need” it.
To think about vaccines as they affect each person individually is blinkered; sure, you don’t want to get sick, but more than vaccines prevent individual illness, they prevent illnesses from spreading. We see this already with children in locations where it’s trendy among parents to simply not get their kids vaccinated from preventable diseases like measles out of irrational fears; because of those parents, those diseases spread faster and people die more frequently. Epidemics happen because of new, wild, aggressive disease strains, but they also happen for lack of prevention. More to the point, just because you can afford to miss work or buy medication when you get sick doesn’t mean others can.
In the same way you don’t not vote because nothing is bothering you specifically, you don’t not get the flu shot because you are very likely to survive it yourself. This is how social contracts work: How a collective action impacts you personally is maybe the least important thing, especially if you are in the most privileged group. Please get your flu shot.
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APATZINGAN, Mexico — Federal forces struggled to bring order to western Mexico Wednesday as vigilantes battled a vicious drug cartel that apparently tried to reassert its authority by burning a downtown pharmacy to enforce its orders that no businesses should open.
The fire attack came just two blocks from the Apatzingan city center where, the day before, dozens of federal police had paraded in an impressive display of force meant to re-impose order in a region where heavily armed vigilantes have taken up a freelance fight against the drug gang.
An employee of the pharmacy said two men pulled up with jerry cans of gasoline and began dousing the store and its merchandise. “They just told us to get out, because they were going to burn the place,” she said.
The employee, part of whose hair was burned off in the attack, refused to give her name for fear of reprisals.
Owners of other stores have said that cartel gunmen have ordered them to close or risk being burned down. Another pharmacy employee, who gave her name only as Norma, said the increased federal security that arrived this week appeared to have done little to discourage the Knights Templar cartel, which has subjected local residents to systematic extortion for years.
But federal forces have other challenges, as well. The local police in Apatzingan were considered so untrustworthy that the entire 300-man force was relieved of duty and sent out of town for background checks.
Officials from the federal and Michoacan state governments met until late Tuesday with leaders of “self-defense” groups.
While refusing to give up their weapons, vigilante leaders appeared to be seeking a cooling of tensions.
“We have to be discreet with our weapons and not move up and down the highways with them,” said Hipolito Mora, a lime grower who leads the self-defense group in the town of La Ruana, after the meeting.
Interior Secretary Miguel Angel Osorio Chong confirmed the talks had taken place, and said the government was offering jobs as police to qualified members of the self-defense forces.
The spokesman for the vigilante movement, Estanislao Beltran, previously said the vigilantes weren’t interested in such offers. “We don’t want jobs as policemen. We’re fighting for the freedom of our families,” he said.
The talks came after soldiers clashed with townspeople in Antunez, where at least two men were reportedly killed during the confrontation that began late Monday. Video of the clash aired by Milenio Television showed a chaotic scene in which angry townspeople scuffled with soldiers and apparently tried to grab the gun and equipment of at least one soldier.
The unrest is in a region of Michoacan known as Tierra Caliente, a farming area rich in limes, avocados and mangos where vigilante groups have been trying to drive out the Knights Templar drug cartel. After a weekend of firefights, the government announced Monday that it would take on security duties in the area.
Throughout Tuesday, federal police officers and soldiers set up roadside checkpoints just yards from roadblocks manned by vigilantes on routes into towns controlled by self-defense groups, but there were no attempts to take weapons from the civilians.
One federal officer who was not authorized to speak to the press said they had no orders to disarm anyone, or to try to take towns held by vigilantes, who have surrounded Apatzingan, which is said to be a Knights Templar stronghold.
Hundreds of federal police officers poured into Apatzingan, the region’s main city, in pickup trucks mounted with machines guns, armored vehicles and buses. They massed in the city’s main square.
Critics have suggested that some self-defense groups have been infiltrated by the rival New Generation cartel, which the vigilantes vehemently deny.
After initially arresting vigilantes months ago, the federal government has appeared to be working with them recently. The army and federal police have provided helicopter cover and road patrols while self-defense groups attacked the cartel, but never intervened in the battles.
Self-defense group leaders said they were coordinating the highway blockades in the 17 municipalities they control to keep out soldiers and federal police.
Felipe Diaz, a leader of vigilantes in Coalcoman, said close to 1,000 men, women and children helped block the main highway until soldiers and dozens of federal police in four buses and 15 pickup trucks left the area.
Associated Press writers Olga R. Rodriguez, E. Eduardo Castillo and Katherine Corcoran in Mexico City contributed to this report.
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So you might ask yourself, “What is going on?” How can things be so bad that educators feel the need to petition?
Superintendent Michael Hanson’s administration issued a mandate to all school principals, vice principals and counselors to lower the number of suspensions and expulsions districtwide using a repackaged, rhetoric-filled behavioral modification program called Restorative Justice.
This Restorative Justice concept is not new. These interventions usually fail under the weight of their overexaggerated promises. This leads to an odd belief that if you decrease the number of official suspensions on paper, you can claim success regarding improved behavior.
Fresno Unified board member Christopher De La Cerda, McLane’s representative, highlighted this delusion when he stated, “The data confirms that restorative practices at McLane are working as we intended it to work.” Sort of like bragging that no one drowned in the pool after the water was removed.
If the intention was for more than 80 percent of the teaching staff to be so fed up they needed to file a petition – congratulations! Mission accomplished.
The saddest part of this debacle is that it has ironically resulted in increased insecurity and systemic violence for our teachers and students who truly want to be educated.
But here is the most disappointing fact: This situation did not need to happen; it was self-inflicted.
Three years ago, there was a wonderful, accredited, academic program in Fresno Unified that took in up to 1,600 secondary students a year, who either could not – or should not – attend a traditional high school.
This program was a last-chance beacon of hope for thousands of students who, by their own fault or the fault of others, would have had no real chance of graduating from high school. It was called the J.E.Young Academic Center (JEY). It provided an educational sanctuary for the very students FUSD is trying to corral with this Restorative Justice debacle.
Every student was treated – educationally and emotionally – as a unique individual. JEY accepted the entire spectrum of students; from those whose special needs could not be adequately met, to those whose behaviors could not be adequately accommodated on a traditional high school campus. This program was an oasis for students on the precipice of failure.
It was a wonderful independent study program that served the needs of those most in need. Everybody won. But that didn’t matter.
For spurious and ego-driven reasons, this program was dismantled and diminished to a mere shell of its former self. It was replaced by a program that failed after two years. Like prisons, it involves removing those in society with unacceptable behaviors and placing them into a concentrated environment of only themselves.
If shooting oneself in the foot was considered a good thing, then FUSD could qualify as a world-class marksman regarding this issue. If FUSD really wanted to practice restorative justice, it would bring JEY back to its previous stature. Maybe Larry Powell could help.
William (Bill) Larkin monitors online credit-recovery classes in the Apex program. He taught in the JEY program for eight years. Connect with him at William.Larkin@fresnounified.org.
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This past month in Google webmaster and SEO news was pretty busy. We had a Halloween search algorithm update that still seems to be creeping around. We also had another few updates including Google saying they are going to make tweaks to the news algorithm. Google+ is shutting down, Google launched their Home Hub and discover feed and so much more.
A month ago we reported Google was testing showing a stats box in the search results from your Google Search Console data. It included showing clicks, impression and average position with some tips. It seems like as of this morning, it is now rolling out to everyone - if they are logged into their Google account and have verified profiles that match queries for the site.
Google's John Mueller said there is no ranking benefit in using different Google Search Console and Google Analytics accounts for each individual web site you manage. The topic came up before, as long as you are not spamming Google - there also is no down side to using the same accounts across multiple web sites.
Last week we reported Google was dropped addresses for some local service businesses. Well, Google posted over the weekend in the Google My Business help forums that they went ahead and separated out the addresses and service areas for these local service businesses.
A couple months ago we reported Google was testing future open dates within Google Maps listings and Google My Business. Well, this weekend, Google officially announced it in the Google My Business Help forums. Allyson Wright, Community Manager, Google My Business, said "We're excited to announce that Google My Business now supports businesses that haven't yet opened to the public!"
As you know, Google renamed the Google Top Contributors to Google Product Experts and this year they held their Product Experts Submit on November 1st. Here are some photos from the day.
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It's been three years since the filing of a suit against the FBI after agents put several Muslims on the No Fly list to retaliate against their refusal to be conscripted as a confidential informants spying on other Muslims; the FBI's illegal retaliation cost their victims their jobs, subjected them to harassment, and cut them off from visits to family overseas.
The FBI and Department of Justice don't dispute the fundamentals in this case: that FBI officers placed Muslims on the No Fly list in retaliation for their refusal to cooperate (and not because they were believed to be a security risk), and that this was illegal.
However, they do object to their victims ability to sue individual FBI officials for their illegal actions; the government's lawyers asked the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to find that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) immunizes corrupt officials from legal consequences of lawbreaking, limiting victims to suing agencies, rather than agents.
The court disagreed. The FBI's victims' suit against the officers who wronged them can proceed to the next step.
Having decided the lawsuit can continue, the Appeals Court decides it doesn't need to reach a finding on the agents' qualified immunity assertions. This will be handled on remand by the lower court, which will first have to make this decision before deciding what (if any) damages the plaintiffs are entitled to.
This is far from a victory for the plaintiffs but it does open the door for similar lawsuits against federal officers for harassment and intimidation tactics deployed in hopes of turning lawful residents and visitors into government informants. Raising the possibility of a successful lawsuit above the previously-presumed zero percent should hopefully act as a minor deterrent against future abuses of power.
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Liberty Hill is conveniently located in the vibrant city of McKinney, named one of the Best Places to Live in America, near 121 and 75.. You won’t have to venture far with multiple corporate headquarters, shopping, and dining just minutes away. Normandy Homes features both single story and two story homes in Liberty Hill with a mix of Traditional, Tudor, and French Country inspired exteriors. Children will attend the highly acclaimed Frisco ISD.
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He and a neighbor managed to lure the horse toward them with a handful of grass, Sickinger said, and they even petted the horse for a bit. Sickinger had a strap he planned to use to bridle the horse, but he said better judgment took over and he decided the horse was too wild to control even if he could wrangle it.
Sickinger told a St. Clair County sheriff’s deputy the horse might belong to a neighbor. There are several horse farms in the area, but none came forward as the owner, Sickinger said.
Moments after Sickinger started petting the horse, a truck drove by and the horse followed after it. No one would see the horse until more than a week later.
On Wednesday, area resident Aranza Lee spotted the horse in a soybean field near Imbs Station and Wagner roads, less than a mile from Sickinger’s home. She captured a video of the horse running freely through the field and shared it to the Millstadt News Facebook page. By Thursday afternoon, the post had more than 400 shares, but no one had come forward as the owner.
“I mean, how weird is that?” said Sara Yoch of Smithton, a self-described horse-lover.
Lt. Alan Haake of the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department said the department has received several reports over the past three weeks about the missing horse, but he said no one has come forward as the owner, nor has anyone been able to catch it.
Yoch was out at the intersection of Otten and Wagner roads Thursday afternoon with a bucket of feed and a lead, looking for the horse. She said she was out in the same area Wednesday for about four hours, but didn’t have any luck.
She warned area residents to avoid approaching the horse if they aren’t familiar with how horses behave, and to slow down when driving through the area. Yoch said a horse standing in a road on a dark night can cause serious damage to a vehicle and hurt the driver, as well as the horse, of course.
It’s possible the horse was dumped, according to Stephanie Goepfert, a member of the Lincoln Trail Riders in O’Fallon. It can easily cost more than $500 a month to care for a horse, Goepfert said, and it’s possible the owner could not afford to keep it.
On its own, the horse could get sick or injured, Goepfert added.
“They can survive for a period of time in the wilderness, but if they’re a domesticated animal, they’re relying on a certain diet. It can be bad for them,” Goepfert said.
They can survive for a period of time in the wilderness, but if they’re a domesticated animal, they’re relying on a certain diet. It can be bad for them.
The most recent sign of the horse was a bedded-down area next to a creek near where the horse was spotted on Tuesday, Lee said.
There was no sign of the horse as of Thursday afternoon, though several groups were planning to head out and search for it.
Anyone who spots the horse can call the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department at 618-207-4374.
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Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Lucid Lynx is the latest Linux operating system from Canonical, aimed at consumers. It's free, but is it sufficiently consumer friendly that you should switch from Windows?
Dell offers Ubuntu Netbook Remix as an option pre-installed for its Dell Inspiron Mini 10 netbook. But how well does UNR fare on other netbooks?
There's never been a better time to give Linux a try on your PC. Here's why.
Is this the easiest way to try Linux on a Win7 laptop?
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Jerry Springer says he is still deciding whether he will run for Ohio governor in 2018.
Speculation around Springer’s potential gubernatorial bid has been growing for several months.
The Enquirer also reported Wednesday that Springer is soliciting feedback from Ohio State Sen. Sandra Williams, Democratic Reps. Janine Boyd and Stephanie Howse, and political consultants.
“Glad to be in attendance @ rep’s Stephanie Howse and Janine Boyd fundraiser w/Jerry Springer, possible candidate for Gov. of Ohio,” Williams tweeted Tuesday.
“He’s very serious,” Williams said of Springer’s interest in running, in an interview with Cleveland.com.
The fundraiser was held at Nighttown, a Cleveland Heights jazz club and restaurant.
Ring said Springer gave a brief speech at the fundraiser.
Springer, 73, previously considered running for US Senate in 2000 and 2004, but decided against it.
He has previously attributed the rumors around his potential bid for governor to former reality TV star Donald Trump’s successful White House bid.
But people continued to discuss Springer’s potential return to politics.
In late May, Business Insider, citing more than half a dozen Democrats familiar with the race, reported influential Ohio Democrats — including former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and Hamilton County Democratic Party Chairman Tim Burke — pushed for Springer to run.
In an interview with CNN’s Brooke Baldwin in May of 2016, Springer — who supported Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016 — was seemingly unsurprised by Trump’s popularity. He said that since President Ronald Reagan, a generation of Americans has grown up believing government is the problem in America.
“The celebrity in politics was inevitable,” Springer said.
Since Trump’s win, a growing number of celebrities have expressed interest in running for office, or have not ruled out pursuing politics in the future.
“I think it’s a real possibility,” Johnson told the publication when asked if he would ever run.
In July, a West Virginia resident created a campaign committee called “Run The Rock 2020” to draft Johnson as a presidential candidate in 2020.
Musician Kid Rock teased a potential bid for US Senate, but ultimately used the social media hype around the buzz to announce his non-profit designed to promote voter registration.
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Urban, born Jacques Pantaléon in Troyes c. 1200, was elected to the papacy in 1261. He studied canon law at Paris and served as bishop of Verdun and patriarch of Jerusalem. He hoped to keep Sicily from the heirs of Frederick II, whom the council of Lyon excommunicated in 1245, because Urban wanted to restore papal influence in Italy. In 1263, he negotiated with Louis IX of France to put Louis' brother Charles of Anjou on the throne of Sicily. Urban died the following year before the treaty was signed.
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Junior golfers in Sri Lanka are making vast strides and improving by leaps and bounds through the efforts of Sri Lanka Golf who are conducting tournaments to keep them abreast with the game.
They are exposed to competitive games every month with the support of various sponsors.
The latest tournament to be organized will be the Sri Lanka Junior Match-play golf championship for the Rukmini Kodagoda Trophy that will be played over four days beginning April 8. The venue will be the Royal Colombo Golf Club (RCGC) where many leading golfers in Asia began their career.
This tournament is sponsored by her family business, the famous Perera and Sons Bakers Limited, which is a fitting tribute to Rukmini.
She was a lady of charismatic personality who played golf and tennis at national level. This tournament will follow the lines of match-play format that pitches one player against another to decide the winner. This allows a player to gauge his skills and ability to overcome his opponent one at a time.
The players will compete in four Age Categories of Gold Division (15-18 years), Silver (12–14 years), Bronze (10-11 years) and Copper for those nine years and under.
Vinod Weerasinghe who won the boys division will not be there to defend his title while Taniya Balasuriya will defend her title.
However, the overall winner will carry away the Rukmini Kodagoda Challenge Trophy in the boys and girls categories.
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Quite frankly, thoughts and prayers can only go so far. They have limited ability to protect our families. The time has come for our elected leaders – including President Barack Obama – to stand up and fight for our families and children, and their safety.
But the American people support stronger gun safety measures more than he believes or cares to say. Polls now demonstrate this to be true.
When our children are being shot at and killed in their schools, or movie theaters, we have to take meaningful action. These tragedies are too frequent, and are, as the president said, heartbreaking.
We need to talk about gun laws. We need an open and honest debate about the tragedies happening in our communities, one after another. There are common-sense laws that can help prevent these tragedies, and Americans support them.
The “Fix Gun Checks Act,” if passed, would make it tougher for the mentally ill to legally buy guns by strengthening background checks so people like James Holmes (the Aurora shooter) can’t acquire guns. Ninety percent of Americans want to fix gaps in government databases that allow the mentally ill or drug users from buying guns. Even gun owners support the laws.
Eighty-two percent of gun owners (National Rifle Association and non-NRA members) believe that a criminal background check should be required for anyone purchasing a gun, according to data released by Republican pollster Frank Luntz for Mayors Against Illegal Guns earlier this year, 76 percent of gun owners support prohibiting people on the terrorist watch list from buying guns, 80 percent support mandatory gun safety training for anyone applying for a concealed permit, and 78 percent of gun owners believe that concealed permits should only be granted to applicants who have not committed violent misdemeanors.
The NRA, which fights against all this, is out of touch — even with its own membership. Its power to dictate this debate has to be challenged.
The data on assault weapons is just as telling. The man identified Friday as the gunman, Adam Lanza was armed with semiautomatic pistols and a semiautomatic rifle and the killers in Aurora and Portland both used an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle. Sixty-three percent of Americans said they favor a nationwide ban on assault weapons, according to a 2011 CBS/New York Times poll, and 63 percent favored banning high-capacity magazines that hold many rounds of ammunition.
We found, in a 2011 survey we conducted for the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, that 57 percent of Americans support a law that would limit the size of ammunition clips so that the gun could not fire more than 10 bullets without having to be reloaded. Only a third, or 34 percent, of Americans opposed that law.
The Brady Bill, which expired under President George W. Bush, and that Obama said he supported, regulated these kinds of assault weapons (AR-15). Those guns are now unregulated and the result is tragedy after tragedy that won’t end until elected leaders step up.
Support for sounder, safer gun laws is not restricted to blue states or big urban cities. In a study conducted by Lake Research Partners earlier this year in swing state-senate districts in Virginia, we found that two-thirds of voters (65 percent) in a rural western Virginia district believe the gun laws should be made stronger — including 52 percent who strongly believe so. Just 24 percent say they should be less restrictive.
Ninety-two percent of voters in a state senate district centered in Roanoke, Virginia, strongly endorsed requiring background checks for people purchasing guns and permits for people who want to carry a concealed loaded weapon.
The NRA and those who oppose gun safety measures should welcome a gun-control debate — especially if they think they have the winning hand.
The consistent lack of leadership on this issue is stunning. But what is most unnerving is that it does not have to be this way – the American people support common sense gun laws.
Others have said, even on Friday, that now is not the time to discuss more gun laws. They said this same thing after Aurora, after Portland, and now after Newtown. They are trying to silence the millions of Americans who want stronger protections from gun violence in their communities.
These silencers, led by the NRA, continue to use the 2011 Gallup poll, which we have already explained is problematic, to shut down the debate about new gun laws that will make us safer. That poll said that 43 percent of Americans support stricter gun laws, a 6 percentage point drop from 2008.
But as the numbers we have cited here show, this single Gallup question is too shallow to really tell the story of what Americans think about gun safety measures.
Now is the time to have a discussion about gun laws that will make our communities and families safer. The American people are ready.
Obama showed great courage earlier this year when he stood up for the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry. His courage and leadership is needed here too. These tragedies will happen again and again until our leaders stand up and pass meaningful gun-safety laws that the American public supports.
No, the public doesn’t agree.
The majority of Americans support the constitutional right to keep and bear arms. This is a fact.
The public does not agree. The only reason there were so many deaths is because the federal ban on firearms within 100feet of a school does not permit a responsible citizen from carrying a firearm. Otherwise someone would have dropped this Perp in his tracks. The police and your gov’t can’t be everywhere and make you safe. Grow up and start taking responsibility for your own security. This article represents the psychology of the victim.
The Republicans need any and all fringe groups to make up for the fact that they represent a small percentage of the electorate.
Their greatest fear is that people will figure them out.
Which public is this that you speak of? The 26% as usual? Stop using tragedy to push your BS agendas.
Almost every Swiss man has an assault rifle and its ammunition, at home, as part of his obligation to do military service. Yet killings using these rifles are extremely rare. Why?
The two writers of this “opinion piece” (you noted, I didn’t call it news, nor refer to the authors as journalists), have managed to present about as much political drivel and spin as I’ve ever seen, in one single story. The vast majority of the article is composed of opinion, half truths, and highly targeted, and vague opinion “polls”. PULEEZE, can we get some real journalism here?
A species that eats its young or fails to protect them becomes extinct. Think about it.
@saildog07. You are clearly remarkably ignorant of what the US is, what we face as a people and what “inalienable rights” means.
I think we should ban meth and heroin, that would keep it off the streets and, keep people from doing it.
The Colordao theater killer chose the only movie theater within 20 miles that had a ban on concealed weapons. You want the only people in the world to have guns to be governments and criminals? a naive concept.
This guy was insane – lets address the problems with mental illness and get some security at schools for God’s sake.
For the first time in my life, I am thinking about buying a gun.
The only places where these mass shootings have happened are where guns are not allowed. (Schools, churches, government buildings) These people maybe mentally ill but they still know enough to do this in places where someone can’t shoot back at them. Anyplace that does not allow legal gun owners to carry a firearm should be required to have an armed guard 24/7. Even then the armed guard won’t be in the right place at the right time. I would feel much safer sending my kids to the school in Texas with the Guardian program where some of the teachers are licensed to carry firearms. Outlaw firearms and only criminals will have them.
This is not what the public wants. This is what the liberals want for the public.
I believe in gun control. I control mine very well. How about controlling the pez dispensing of mind altering, psychosis enducing drugs you’re giving people. Even dispensing these harmful drugs to young adults!
In the Supreme Court case, Castle Rock v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748 (2005), the court ruled that our local police are not responsible for protecting us. SOOOOOO, who IS responsible for protecting us? We are responsible. That’s why I responsibly conceal carry. I protect my wife and 2 small children. When more responsible people carry, violent crime goes down. The FBI crime statistics don’t lie. Why do the left and gun grabbing crowd ignore this fact? Liberalism is a mental disorder.
Lets look one poll that this particular article is using for it’s numbers.
The poll used 2 Senate Districts in the State of VA. District 21 and District 38.
with the total numbers of respondents being 305 voters in District 21 and 302 voters in district 38.
That’s a fairly small sample size considering Roanoke VA (part of district 21) has a population of 92,376 (2010 numbers) but polls being what they are they can’t call every registered voter.
So they are making a statement for the entire state of Virginia with a population of 8 million give or take from the words of 607 people. Now not all of the 8 million are old enough to vote or even care enough to vote. But the statement that such a small group of people are the norm for a much larger population is suspicious.
Lets now look at the generator of the poll and the authors of this piece. Lake Research here is a snippet from their web site.
Nothing unusual there, next check their “outstanding clients” I did not check all of them but the ones I did check are Democrats with a history of voting for more firearms laws or outright bans.
So going down to the list of causes that they have worked for I see several that catch my eye, The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, MoveOn.org, Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. So I think it is safe to say that this is a group that is defiantly not non-bias. Nothing wrong with that, but I would not trust this group to give me honest results any more than I would a Republican think tank on gay marriage.
So as to the title of this opinion piece states “Public agrees” there is not enough data in their source material to even make that assumption let alone any reason to believe that the authors are trying to give anything but their own viewpoints legitimacy.
I think the founding fathers would have had a different opinion if they realized that modern “constitutionalists” were defending the right of 14 year old drug dealers to carry semiautomatic weapons or mentally deranged people to spray bullets into elementary school classrooms. The one part that is frequently lacking in these types of discussions is any realistic alternate solution or approach for stemming the regular occurrence of these types of events. Arming guards at the entrances to all schools? Really? Is that really the statement of our times? Ok, so we are the most heavily armed society in the world and we kill more fellow Americans every year than the combined total of the Gulf War, the Twin Towers assault, the Iraq war and the War on Terror in Afghanistan. Every year. Are there any serious suggestions of how to begin to address these murders?
A gun is an inanimate tool not deviant behavior and crime is deviant behavior not an inanimate tool.
You can’t prevent deviant behavior by regulating tools because tools are incapable of behavior and the number of tools available to the world’s deviants is endless.
Even if you could legislate guns out of existence, deviants could, would and have used other things that gave them a power advantage over their victims—knives, clubs, rocks or even sharp sticks—all of which are very legal and very accessible.
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Az Zallaqa, JNIM’s media branch, branded with other official al Qaeda media wings.
In a recently released video, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) – a jihadist group primarily based in West Africa and the Sahel – went to great lengths to portray its fight against Mali and France as conjoined with al Qaeda’s global jihad. Speeches and footage from several al Qaeda leaders from around the world were shown interlaced with combat footage from the African jihadist group.
At the very beginning of the video, JNIM showed its media division, Az Zallaqa, as being in the same family as other al Qaeda media wings. This includes As Sahab (al Qaeda central’s media division), Al Malahem (al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula), Al Kata’ib (Shabaab), and al Andalus (al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb). By putting its media wing alongside other media branches of the global jihadist organization, JNIM is portraying Az Zallaqa as another official al Qaeda media organization.
This is important as some have categorized JNIM as merely being “linked” or “affiliated” with al Qaeda. However, JNIM clearly sees itself on equal footing with al Qaeda’s official branches around the world.
As the video progresses, JNIM depicts its conflict in Mali as being the same conflict seen in various places around the world, such as Nigeria, Libya, Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Kenya, Afghanistan, and Chechnya. Various killed al Qaeda leaders, such as Osama bin Laden, Nasir al Wuyashi, Anwar al Awlaki, Ibn Khattab, Mukhtar Abu Zubayr, Abu al Hasan al Rashid al Bulaydi, Abdelhamid Abu Zeid, Abu Firas al Suri, and Muhammad al Zahawi, are shown in a eulogy segment.
A speech from Sulayman Abu al Ghaith, a former al Qaeda spokesman who is now serving a life sentence in the US, can be heard over footage of combat from JNIM. “God ordered us to protect the vulnerable, so we protect the vulnerable. God ordered us to terrorize the apostates, so we terrorize the apostates. God ordered us to kill the leaders of disbelief, so we kill the leaders of disbelief,” al Ghaith said as he linked al Qaeda’s jihad to “protecting the vulnerable” around the world.
The message then shifted to lambasting both Mali and France for their efforts to combat the jihadist group in the West African country. JNIM used English-speaking political commentators to suggest France’s involvement in Mali is a large conspiracy as part of a wider war against Islam. A JNIM official identified as Abdul Hakim al Muhajir [implying he is a foreign fighter] reiterated in this point in a long-winded tirade against France.
“France’s war on Muslims in the region is not a economic war … it is between faith and apostasy, and Islam and idolatry,” al Muhajir stated in his speech. That theme was common for JNIM and its predecessor groups in Mali, as it painted France as an occupying force oppressing Muslims in a war against Islam. Speeches and statements from various JNIM leaders, including Iyad Ag Ghaly and Yahya Abu al Hammam – its emir and deputy emir respectively – have focused on this exact trope in the last three years.
Yahya Abu al Hammam continued that trend by also making a short speech against France and the G5 Sahel forces operating in Mali. This was immediately before showing suicide bombers and an assault team training for the April 14 suicide assault on the joint UN-French base in Timbuktu. One actual UN peacekeeper was killed in that attack, while at least 10 others were wounded during the assault. France confirmed seven of its soldiers were also wounded. Additionally, the French military reported at least 15 jihadists were killed.
Despite a French counter-terrorism operation, UN troops, and troops from the G5 Sahel, JNIM remain a potent threat within Mali. Its violence has also been continuously shifting further south within Mali, as well as pouring into neighboring countries such as Burkina Faso and Niger.
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Jan. 22 will be here before agencies know it. So will Feb. 6. Here’s betting that even April 16 will be here seemingly tomorrow.
Those are the 45-day, 60-day and 120-day deadlines folded into the Open Government Directive, issued by the White House last month. The first, which arrives soon, is when every federal agency must identify and publish online at least three high-value datasets it plans to make available to the public.
Fifteen days after that, each agency must launch an open-government Web page that is ready to be updated in a timely fashion. By April 16, each agency must unveil an open-government plan that will describe how it will improve transparency and integrate public participation and collaboration into its activities.
Those are tall orders in short times, to be sure. However, most agencies haven't devised an open-government plan, decided what data is high value or figured out how to share it with the public. The directive is a sweeping mandate designed to transform the way the federal government interacts with the public, yet even its White House authors say each agency is essentially moving through this territory on its own without a road map.
Agencies have few choices for figuring out how to comply with the directive. They can go it alone and create a plan that they hope makes the grade. Perhaps some will join forces or find industry partners that might guide them to a successful outcome. Or, counting on the kindness of strangers in the White House, they can rely on promised support from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Science and Technology Policy, where the authors of the directive live.
But even though the vagueness of the directive is a challenge, most agencies agree that it could be worse. Flexibility is better than getting strict and possibly draconian requirements that don’t account for agencies' special needs and different missions. For example, the way NASA shares images of the surface of Mars needs to be different than the way the Bureau of Transportation Statistics shares airline flight delay data.
The two men behind the directive are federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra and Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra. By the Feb. 6 deadline, they are supposed to establish a dashboard on WhiteHouse.gov that will aggregate statistics and visualizations so the public can see how various agencies are doing.
The goal of the dashboard is not to highlight agencies’ failures, Chopra said.
It’s not unreasonable to assume that new efforts in public engagement will be an evolution of older programs. For example, the General Services Administration published 12 years' worth of Federal Advisory Committee data onto Data.gov the day after the directive was announced.
David McClure, associate administrator of GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Communications, suggests that agencies take a close look at whom they serve and then provide data that will be the most valuable to people.
But with the directive’s deadlines fast approaching, it’s not clear if all, much less many, agencies will be able to demonstrate the early goals of openness and transparency. After all, the memo issued by President Barack Obama that got all this whole thing rolling called for the directive to be published by late May 2009. It ended up being released Dec. 8, which shows that creating a transparent government isn’t a see-through process.
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The City collects garbage weekly from 600,000 households along 350 daily routes. The City has long organized garbage collection services on a ward-by-ward basis. The City assigns the laborers and motor truck drivers who collect garbage in individual wards, where they work on truck routes that do not cross ward boundaries.
However, the City’s recycling pickup is organized based on a regional routing system that does not take into account ward boundaries.
Under this option, the City would shift its garbage collection to a regional, grid-based system. By comparing the efficiency of recycling collection with garbage collection, we can estimate what efficiencies might be achieved through a regional, grid-based system of garbage collection.
According to the City’s Mobile Asset Tracking system (CMAT), the City currently has 43 recycling trucks. Assuming that these trucks are all continually operational, the City is providing recycling services to 241,000 households every other week using 43 daily routes.36 The table below compares the difference in annual pickups per daily route of garbage collection and recycling.
The table shows that recycling collection, which uses regional routing, averages significantly more pickups per route than garbage collection, which uses the ward system.
This is despite the fact that recycling trucks only have one laborer assigned, while some garbage trucks have two. However, garbage collection averages nearly 11 tons collected per daily route per day, while recycling collection averages only 4.65 tons per daily route per day.
Because garbage collection is collecting significantly more tonnage per route, workers spend less time collecting because the trucks must make more frequent trips to dump their loads.
In 2008, the average load dumped at City-owned dumpsites was 6.65 tons. Based on the average tons collected per route per day, garbage collection averages 1.65 loads per day and recycling averages 0.7 loads per day.
For simplicity, assume that garbage collection dumps two loads per day and recycling dumps one load per day, and one load in each program is dumped after the 8-hour collection shift is over through the City’s night shuttle program.
Under these assumptions, garbage collection is interrupted by one dump during the 8-hour collection shift, while recycling collection is not. Assuming an average dump takes 1.5 hours, garbage is collected an average of 6.5 hours per route per day, while recycling is collected for the full 8-hour collection shift.
The table below compares the estimated pickups per hour for garbage and recycling collection and shows that recycling collection using regional routing is more efficient in terms of pickups per hour than garbage collection based on the ward system.
If garbage collection averaged the same number of pickups per hour as recycling collection, the number of daily routes could be reduced to 264, or a 24.6% reduction.
Assuming that a 24.6% reduction in routes would yield a 24.6% reduction in staffing devoted to garbage collection, the table below details the reduction in personnel and associated personnel costs that would be realized.
The table shows that if the City were to move to a grid-based routing system for garbage collection and achieve the same efficiency that the regional routing of recycling is currently achieving, the City might reduce its 2010 personnel costs by up to $24.1 million through the elimination of up to 297 positions.
Because of contractual increases in personnel costs, the savings from implementing this option would grow in future years.
The 2011 and 2012 salaries of Laborers and Motor Truck Drivers will be higher due to collective bargaining agreements, which call for salary increases of 3.25% in 2011 and 3.5% in 2012.
Assuming that there are no increases in salaries for the other positions and that the furloughs are continued in their current form, the table below shows the increase in compensation costs over the next two years for the 297 eliminated positions.
In addition to the savings from a reduction in the number of daily routes, additional savings could be generated by reducing the number of laborers on the remaining routes to one laborer per truck.
With 264 daily routes, operating approximately 250 days a year, there are approximately 66,000 annual routes. Assuming that the average sanitation worker works 200 days per year (after holidays, vacation days, and sick and disability leave) to ensure that there would be a sufficient reserve to avoid un-staffed routes, 330 sanitation laborers would be needed to fully staff the 66,000 routes.
This would mean an additional reduction in the number of laborers by 122. At an average compensation of $75,579, their total compensation in 2010 would equal $9.2 million.
The 2011 and 2012 compensation will be higher due to the Laborers collective bargaining agreement, which calls for a salary increase of 3.25% in 2011 and 3.5% in 2012. Assuming that the furloughs remain in place, the compensation for these 122 positions will cost $9.5 million in 2011 and $9.8 million in 2012.
These savings will be slightly reduced because under the current collective bargaining agreement with the Laborers Union, sanitation laborers working on one-laborer garbage trucks are to be paid 9 percent more than their regular hourly rate.
Thus, the reduction in 122 laborers would on average result in 122 additional laborers working on a one-laborer garbage truck, resulting in a 9 percent increase in their salaries. This would cost an additional $856,000 in 2011 and $885,000 in 2012.
Additionally, under the agreement between the City and Coalition of Union Public Employees (COUPE) to impose furlough days from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2011, if the City chooses to lay off employees during this period, all laid off employees will be paid for any unpaid holidays or furlough days taken since July 1, 2009.
Thus, if the City were to lay off the 269 total sanitation laborers and 110 motor truck drivers, the affected employees would have to be paid approximately 13.5 percent of their salaries to compensate for unpaid days they have taken over the last year and a half, since the furlough agreement has been in place. This would reduce the savings in 2011 by an additional $3.8 million.
Therefore, the total estimated savings from switching to regional routing system of garbage collection and reducing the number of laborers on the remaining routes to 1 would be $29.6 million in 2011 and $34.5 million in 2012.
Of course, there would be additional savings from reducing the City’s fleet of garbage trucks such as savings in future truck purchases, maintenance costs, gas, oil, etc.
Proponents might argue that organizing garbage collection on a ward-by-ward basis is inefficient and wasteful. They would argue that organizing collection by regional grid would reduce the time it takes for workers to get from the ward yard to the routes and routes could be organized to reduce the distance from route to dumpsite.
They may also cite an IGO investigation in 2008 that found that garbage collection crews worked, on average, only 75 percent of the work day, indicating that there was not enough work for the collection crews to perform. Additionally, they might cite the fact that Streets and Sanitation decided to organize recycling collection on a regional, grid-based system in order to deliver the service more cheaply.
Opponents might argue that ward-based system provides better customer service than a more centralized grid system.
With ward-by-ward service, City residents have a more direct relationship with the City workers who coordinate garbage collection in their neighborhoods. Some might also argue that garbage collection has long been a primary responsibility of the City’s aldermen and that this has resulted in cleaner streets, timelier pickups, and satisfied residents.
Reduce the Number of Laborers on a Garbage Truck to 1 Savings: $10.3 million in 2011, $12 million in 2012.
On some of the City’s garbage trucks, the City assigns two laborers and one motor truck driver.... These employees are responsible for the weekly collection of garbage from 600,000 households along 350 daily routes.
Until the last couple of years, the City generally assigned two laborers to each garbage truck. However, due to budget cuts, the City has reduced the number of budgeted sanitation laborers from 816 in 2008 to 599 in 2010. This reduction in laborers means that a significant portion of the 350 daily routes are manned by one laborer.
Under this option, the City would further reduce the number of laborers devoted to garbage collection, so that on average one laborer is assigned to each garbage truck.
With 350 daily routes, operating approximately 250 days a year, there are approximately 87,500 annual routes. Assuming that the average sanitation worker works 200 days per year (after holidays, vacation days, and sick and disability leave) to ensure that there would be a sufficient reserve to avoid un-staffed routes, 438 sanitation laborers would be needed to fully staff the 87,500 routes.
This means that the number of laborers could be reduced by approximately 161.50 At an average compensation of $75,579 their total compensation in 2010 would equal $12.2 million. The 2011 and 2012 compensation will be higher due to the Laborers collective bargaining agreement, which calls for a salary increase of 3.25% in 2011 and 3.5% in 2012. Assuming that the furloughs remain in place, the compensation for these 161 positions will cost $12.6 million in 2011 and $13 million in 2012.
These savings will be reduced because under the current collective bargaining agreement with the Laborers Union, sanitation laborers working on one-laborer garbage trucks are to be paid 9 percent more than their regular hourly rate.
Thus, the reduction in 161 laborers would on average result in 161 additional laborers working on a one-laborer garbage truck, resulting in a 9 percent increase in their salaries. This would cost an additional $934,000 in 2011 and $967,000 in 2012.
Finally, under the agreement between the City and Coalition of Union Public Employees (COUPE) to impose furlough days from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2011, if the City chooses to lay off employees during this period, all laid off employees will be paid for any unpaid holidays or furlough days taken since July 1, 2009.
Thus, if the City were to lay off 161 laborers, the affected laborers would have to be paid approximately 13.5 percent of their salaries to compensate for unpaid days they have taken over the last year and a half, since the furlough agreement has been in place. This would reduce the savings in 2011 by an additional $1.36 million.
After subtracting the reduced savings due to the increased pay for 1-person garbage trucks and the furlough payback provision, the savings from implementing this option would be approximately $10.3 million in 2011 and $12 million in 2012.
Proponents might argue that the City no longer needs two laborers on a garbage truck because the trucks are now semi-automated, meaning garbage carts are lifted and dumped by a mechanism on the back of the trucks.
They may also cite an IGO investigation in 2008 that found that garbage collection crews worked, on average, only 75 percent of the work day, indicating that there was not enough work for the collection crews to perform.
Others might argue that few cities have three staff assigned to each garbage truck. According to 2008 data from the International City/County Management Association’s (ICMA), among the six jurisdictions with over 500,000 people which submitted data only one (San Antonio) had 3 staff per garbage vehicle, and this is likely because collection is done manually.
The other five jurisdictions (Phoenix, Miami-Dade County, Dallas, Austin, and Oklahoma City) all had 1 person per vehicle and automated or semi-automated collection.
Opponents might argue that reducing the number of laborers to one on all garbage trucks would reduce the quality of collection service in the City. They would argue that reducing the number of laborers could result in less frequent service as it takes trucks longer to perform their routes.
Additionally, others might argue that in addition to their collection responsibilities, laborers sweep alleys, pick up trash, or remove street-sweeping signs. Reducing the number of laborers would mean a reduction in these services.
Simple. Organize the wards on a grid system, rather than gerrymandered as they are now. Makes the garbage collection more efficient, while keeping it in the hands of the aldermen.
The trucks on the Far North Side are picking up less garbage than a year ago.
I know this because while they're leaving the garage on Ravenswood Ave. at the same time every morning, they're coming back for the day way before they used to. Now they return as early as 2 PM, while a year ago it was at 3 PM. All the workers cars are gone by 3 PM now, it used to take until 4 PM last year.
The only explanation for the ward by ward system appears to be the very least paragraph which to me seems pretty flimsy. How are the residents' or aldermen's relationships with the city workers stronger if they don't cross ward boundaries on any given day? They still have to pick up their garbage every week? I don't get that at all.
---I also found it interesting that the city apparently picks up about twice the tonnage of trash than it does recycling. In the superboonies where I live, the ratio is more than twice the opposite. We have two wheeled containers for each house; one for recycling, and a somewhat larger one for trash. We fill the recycling container each week, and the trash container has a few things in the bottom of it; some garbage, contaminated paper not suitable for recycling, used facial tissues, the occasional diaper when the grandchildren come visiting. The city's ratio is possibly a residuum of the blue bag program; people just aren't used to a serious recycling program yet.
And oh yes: the collection trucks have a claw on the side that picks up the container, upends it and dumps it. One man per truck, and he never has to get out.
Cut down on high absenteeism while you're at it.
I lived in Chicago until 1975 and knew that if you wanted to guarantee that the old loveseat or refrigerator that you hauled out to your alley were to be picked up it was a good idea to meet the garbage truck with maybe a cold six pack in a brown bag or possibly a $5 bill discreetly passed to the driver. Actually, you could give it to any one of the three or four 'workers' who either drove, rode on the back of, or walked along behind, the truck. Since then I've lived in the suburbs (Alsip, Justice, Worth, Lockport) and have enjoyed simple, cost effective trash collection by various private refuse companies. I have never, in more than 35 years, had to call to complain about the service I've received. This includes picking up couchs, freezers, construction waste or trees. If there's a holiday, flood, blizzard or any other form of delay they're there the day after the normal pick-up day, never later. The most amazing part is, all of this is done by one worker, and has been for the last 20 years. So, until somebody in city government grows a pair and finally decides to attack the real problem, this totally wasteful practice will continue.
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Rafael Nadal became the first man to win eight titles at the same Grand Slam tournament after beating fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 in the French Open final on Sunday.
If Rafael Nadal truly was going to be challenged, if his bid for an unprecedented eighth French Open championship would be slowed even a bit, this might have been the moment.
Leading by a set and a break 70 minutes into Sunday's final against David Ferrer, another generally indefatigable Spaniard, Nadal faced four break points in one game. The last was a 31-stroke exchange, the match's longest, capped when Nadal absorbed Ferrer's strong backhand approach and transformed it into a cross-court backhand passing shot.
Ferrer glared at the ball as it flew past and landed in a corner, then smiled ruefully. What else was there to do? Dealing with Nadal's defence-to-offence on red clay is a thankless task. His rain-soaked 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Ferrer on was Nadal's record 59th win in 60 matches at the French Open and made him the only man with eight titles at any Grand Slam tournament.
"I never like to compare years, but it's true that this year means something very special for me," Nadal said, alluding to the way he managed to come back from a left knee injury that sidelined him for about seven months.
"When you have a period of time like I had," he added, "you realize that you don't know if you will have the chance to be back here with this trophy another time."
But he does it, year after year.
He won four French Opens in a row from 2005-08, and another four in a row from 2010-13.
"Rafael was better than me," said Ferrer, who had won all 18 sets he'd played the past two weeks to reach his first Grand Slam final at age 31. "He didn't make mistakes."
A week past his 27th birthday, Nadal now owns 12 major trophies in all — including two from Wimbledon, one each from the U.S. Open and Australian Open — to eclipse Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver and equal Roy Emerson for the third-most in history. Nadal trails only Roger Federer's 17 and Pete Sampras' 14.
"Winning 17 Grand Slam titles, that's miles away," Nadal said with his typical humility. "I'm not even thinking about it."
This was Nadal's first major tournament after a surprising second-round loss at Wimbledon last June. Since rejoining the tour in February, he is 43-2 with seven titles and two runner-up finishes. He's won his past 22 matches.
"For me, it's incredible," said Toni Nadal, Rafael's uncle and coach. "When I think of all that Rafael has done, I don't understand it."
Let's be plain: No one, perhaps not even Ferrer himself, expected Nadal to lose Sunday.
That's because of Nadal's skill on clay, in general, and at Roland Garros, in particular, but also because of how Ferrer had fared against his friend and countryman — and video-game competitor — in the past.
Ferrer entered Sunday 4-19 against Nadal. On clay, Nadal had 16 consecutive victories over Ferrer, whose only head-to-head win on the surface came the first time they played, in July 2004, when Nadal was 18.
Nadal had yet to make his French Open debut then, missing it that year because of a broken left foot. On May 23, 2005, Nadal played his first match at Roland Garros, beating Lars Burgsmuller 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-1 on Court 1, known as the "bullring" because of its oval shape.
And so began the reign.
Nadal won a record 31 consecutive matches at the French Open until the fourth round in 2009, when Robin Soderling beat him. In 2010, Nadal started a new streak, which currently stands at 28.
There was occasional shakiness this year. Nadal lost the first set of each of his first two matches, and was pushed to a tiebreaker to begin his third. His fourth match, a straight-set win against No. 15 Kei Nishikori, "was a major step forward," Nadal said. Still, he barely edged No. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic in a thrilling semifinal that lasted more than 4 1/2 hours and ended 9-7 in the fifth set Friday.
By any measure, that match was far more enjoyable to take in than the final, akin to dining on a filet mignon accompanied by a well-aged bottle of Bordeaux — each bite and sip rich, textured — one day, then grabbing a hot dog and can of soda from a street vendor 48 hours later.
Under a leaden sky that eventually would release a steady shower from the second set on, Ferrer felt nerves at the outset, he acknowledged later. But after the players traded early breaks, Ferrer held for a 3-2 lead.
That's when Nadal took over, winning seven games in a row and 12 of 14 to render the ultimate result pretty clear. It was as if he simply decided, "Enough is enough." His court coverage was impeccable, as usual, showing no signs of any problems from that left knee, which was supported by a band of white tape. His lefty forehand whips were really on-target, accounting for 19 of his 35 winners and repeatedly forcing errors from Ferrer.
When Nadal did have lapses, he admonished himself, once slapping his forehead with his right palm after pushing a lob wide. But what's demoralizing for opponents is the way Nadal slams the door when they have openings, then rushes through when he gets the slightest chance.
He was at his relentless best on key points, including those four break chances for Ferrer at 3-1 in the second set. Immediately after, Nadal broke to 5-1 on a forehand winner down the line.
As Nadal prepared to serve in the next game, a man wearing a white mask and carrying a fiery flare jumped out of the stands nearby. The intruder quickly was shoved to the ground by one security guard, while another went to protect Nadal.
"I felt a little bit scared at the first moment," Nadal said, "because I didn't see what's going on."
It happened within a few minutes of other actions by protesters, including chanting from the upper deck that briefly delayed play. Police said seven people were held for questioning.
Nadal got broken in that game, then broke back right away to take the second set.
The third set was similar to the first. It was 3-all, then suddenly over. Nadal took the last three games, ending the match with a forehand winner before dropping his racket and falling on his back, leaving a rust-colored smudge on his white shirt and flecks of clay on his stubbled cheeks. Soon he was standing, holding his index finger aloft.
Yes, Nadal is No. 1 at the French Open, without a doubt. When the ATP rankings are issued Monday, however, he will be No. 5, due to points he dropped while hurt. Oddly enough, Ferrer will be at No. 4.
"Yeah, it's strange, no? I lost the final against Rafael, but tomorrow I am going to be No. 4 and him No. 5," Ferrer said with a grin, then delivered his punchline: "I prefer to win here and to stay No. 5."
Sorry, David. This is Nadal's tournament.
Now the question becomes: Is eight enough?
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Advocates for government accountability were alarmed to learn Gov. Jared Polis was undecided on whether to veto a bill to expand police transparency in Colorado.
But Polis spokeswoman Maria De Cambra set the record straight late Wednesday.
The signing is slated for 10:50 a.m. Friday at the Capitol, and it will be open to media, De Cambra said.
Polis is allowed to wait 10 days to sign bills, which gives him until Saturday in this case. In an earlier call Wednesday, De Cambra had said that the governor was still undecided.
The bill — HB-1119, sponsored by Democratic Denver Rep. James Coleman — would require Colorado law enforcement agencies to open the files on completed internal investigations into a wide range of police interactions with citizens, including alleged incidents of excessive force.
This would mean the public, media, lawyers and any other interested parties would, through open records requests, get a glimpse at how Colorado cops police themselves. As it stands, the Denver Police Department is the only Colorado law enforcement agency that consistently releases comprehensive information following internal investigations.
The bill passed the House and Senate and has been sitting on the governor’s desk for about a week, awaiting the final signature needed to make HB-1119 state law.
Upon learning Polis was not necessarily on board with the bill, the Colorado Press Association — one of the primary backers of the bill — sent out an email to its members that called the situation “urgent” and implored journalists and editorial boards to speak out now in support of HB-1119.
Media in the state have heralded the bill as a key step toward transparency from an institution that shrouds much of its accountability system in secrecy. The Denver Post’s Noelle Phillips testified in support of HB-1119 this year.
The effort’s other supporters include the ACLU and Colorado Common Cause, the libertarian Independence Institute and media groups such as the Colorado Broadcasters Association and the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition. Colorado Independent Editor Susan Greene testified last year in support of a version of the bill.
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The arrest of opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez exposes Venezuela’s Potemkin democracy and Hugo Chavez’s poisonous legacy.
A few days after Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chavez expired, his body saturated with cancer he believed was implanted in him by the CIA, I sat on an MSNBC panel encircled by academics sympathetic to the dead autocrat. Vastly outnumbered by halfwits and fellow travellers, I reached for the most conciliatory point available. “Chavez was no democrat," I muttered, after viewing clips of various silly pundits denouncing him as a dictator, "but words mean things." An authoritarian, yes, but he didn't quite rise to the definitional standard of dictator. “You can go to Venezuela, you can be in the opposition, you can read [opposition newspaper] El Nacional...” And on and on I droned.
It was a tedious point, and one that, in pursuit of a narrow semantic argument, elided all the undemocratic developments in Venezuela since Chavez began his campaign of political and social polarization, his destruction of the country’s economy and already tattered democratic institutions. But compared to my fellow guests, I was something of a counterrevolutionary, a wrecker, an ideological deviationist serving the interests of the bourgeoise. Or the CIA. Or USAID. A particularly radical panelist, one of those sad little political pilgrims always sniffing out the next Third World utopia, had argued in the days after Chavez's death that "the biggest problem Venezuela faced during his rule was not that Chávez was authoritarian but that he wasn’t authoritarian enough."
My academic co-panelist, so disappointed in Chavez’s apparently mild form of Castroism, can rejoice in the disastrous but sufficiently authoritarian rule of his chosen successor, the former bus driver and Chavez confidante Nicolás Maduro. But the Cuban-trained Maduro, who has variously claimed to have seen Chavez’s ghost in bird form and reported that his mentor’s apparition was spotted loitering in the Caracas subway system, rendered the autocrat-versus-dictator debate moot this week when he ordered the arrest of the handsome, telegenic, and Harvard-trained opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. It was Lopez and his allies who helped organize a series of protest marches in the past week, during which three people were brutally gunned down--and the weight of evidence, much of it marshalled by the usually pro-government newspaper Últimas Noticias, suggests that all three were killed by Maduro’s goon squads.
So naturally, the government ordered the arrest of...Lopez.
And yesterday, at the start of a large—and illegal—opposition march (the government had a counter demonstration, which oddly wasn’t declared illegal), Lopez gave a short speech and turned himself over to the National Guard. It was an astoundingly brave bit of defiance; after all, is there a place on Earth worse than the inside of a Venezuelan prison? And a lesser man, like myself, would have sprinted to the airport and hopped the next flight to Miami. But there was Lopez, after having tenderly kissed and bid farewell to his wife, being wrenched into a waiting police van, a Venezuelan flag in one hand and a clutch of white flowers in the other. A picture that perfectly illustrated the death blow to Venezuelan democracy. Lopez would soon arrive at a military prison to await charges of incitement (!), homicide (!!), and terrorism (!!!).
Maduro, in the lunatic tradition of his lunatic predecessor, conjured a sinister plot: “We have been informed that the ultra-right wing of Venezuela, in tandem with the ultra-right wing of Miami, apropos the bench warrant, activated foreign groups to find and kill [Lopez] so as to fuel a political crisis and lead us to civil war." It’s not so generous to defame and arrest a political opponent, but look how generous they were in saving his life from his fellow fascists!
Indeed, outside of the official newspaper of the 1932 German Communist Party, is there any other organized political movement in history that is so profligate in its use if the word fascist? And if we are to allow elastic political definitions when discussing Venezuela—the moderate opposition are National Socialists, for instance—I am going to slacken my rules governing the use of the word dictator: Chavez might not have qualified, but Nicolas Maduro sure as hell does.
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LUCERNE VALLEY — A motorist on Thursday morning found the body of a bicyclist who had been struck by a hit-and-run driver the night before.
Angelo “Andy” Douglas Azzato, 47, of Lucerne Valley had been riding east on Highway 247 when he was struck from behind, San Bernardino County coroner’s officials said.
Investigators say the crash occurred either late Wednesday or early Thursday.
A passing motorist found his body on the side of the road just before 8 a.m..
Anyone with information may call the California Highway Patrol’s Victorville office, 760-241-1186.
Relatives of Azzato, who are being sought by coroner’s officials, may call 909-387-2978.
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The victim has been identified as Antonio Marquez-Melgar, 37, of Plainfield.
PLAINFIELD – A fatal pedestrian hit-and-run in the city is under investigation.
The Union County Prosecutor's Office and Plainfield Police Department are investigating an incident in which a pedestrian was struck and killed by a vehicle in the city Thursday night, authorities said.
Shortly before 7:30 p.m., members of the Union County Homicide Task Force and Plainfield Police Division responded to the area of Madison Avenue and West Eighth Street on a report of a motor vehicle accident, according to a preliminary investigation.
The investigation revealed a white Kia sedan with two occupants collided with a Lexus in the intersection, knocking the Kia into Marquez-Melgar and killing him. The two occupants of the Kia then fled the area on foot and remain at large.
The Union County Sheriff’s Office’s Crime Scene Unit and Union County Police Department Fatal Accident Reconstruction Team are also assisting in this investigation.
Anyone with information about this matter is being urged to contact Prosecutor’s Office Detective Nicholas Falcicchio at 908-721-8186 or the Plainfield Police Division Traffic Unit at 908-753-3360.
March 22, 2019, 3:38 p.m.
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The world of technology, particularly medical technology, tends to be consumed with making us superhuman. It wants to enhance our abilities and prolong our lives, if not enable us to live forever. But new innovations give rise to new and tough choices, and a small but growing group of startups sees it as their mission to use technology, not to extend life, but to help people make and document some of the most difficult decisions regarding the end of it.
The story of a patient from her days as a student at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine particularly haunts Azalea Kim, co-founder of the startup TrueNorth. A 60-year-old woman, who had terminal cancer, came to the emergency room one weekend evening in dire condition. Because of a complicated family situation, Kim said, she arrived alone, without any family member to serve as an advocate and describe the kind of care she would want.
Although her medical record was overflowing with documentation, the doctors were unable to locate a health care proxy form that could also have provided guidance on the kind of procedures the woman would – and wouldn’t – have wanted in her final days. So, Kim explained, the doctors slipped into default mode, administering intravenous therapy, sending her to a radiologist, considering a surgical intervention and providing all kinds of aggressive and potentially unwanted care.
Partly motivated by that experience, Kim and two Harvard Business School classmates, Margaret Terry and Amy Flaster, launched TrueNorth. A recent graduate of the Healthbox startup accelerator in Boston, TrueNorth provides a free online service for patients to record their legal healthcare proxy (or power of attorney) and then share it with loved ones and healthcare providers.
The goal, the founders said, is for TrueNorth to encourage patients to tackle difficult end-of-life decisions and ultimately integrate with electronic medical record systems to make these forms available in the health and emergency contexts in which they’re needed.
A planning tool on MyDirectives prompts patients to indicate their preferences and values related to end-of-life care.
And it’s one of a handful of relatively new startups trying to use technology to help patients think through and share their end of life decisions. For example, along with TrueNorth, the Dallas-based MyDirectives exclusively offers support around health-related decisions, while startups Everplans and AfterSteps focus on medical planning services, along with a wider range of financial and legacy planning options.
According to Kim, just 25 percent of patients have documented a health care proxy or living will. And, other estimates indicate that even when a document exists, it can’t be located 35 percent of the time. These companies say their digital tools help ensure that patients’ voices are heard when they’re at their most vulnerable or can no longer speak for themselves.
For example, they can walk patients through their end-of-life prioritizes, enabling them to indicate that they most value being free from pain or not being a burden to their families. They also let patients specify the circumstances in which they’d want life-sustaining treatment, like heart machines and dialysis.
And their rise makes sense given the growth of the so-called “longevity economy” of services for the aging Baby Boomer demographic, increasing awareness among patients that they need to be more proactive about their health and the digitization of healthcare — not to mention major advances in medical technology.
As a study from the Pew Internet & American Life pointed out earlier this month, nearly 40 percent of American adults are caring for another adult or child with a serious illness. And, a big chunk of those adults are part of the workforce. According to MyDirectives, caregiving-related expenses cost employers $17 to $33 billion a year in lost productivity (canceled meetings, delayed product launches, etc.) and an additional $11 billion in healthcare costs because caregivers suffer from stress, depression and other conditions.
For end-of-life care companies, that means there’s an opportunity in targeting employers with a service that lets them improve care for their employees while hopefully contributing to productivity. For health plans, the pitch is that these services could help them attract and retain customers. And, in an era of rising healthcare costs, these services could also reduce the number of unwanted and often expensive procedures – an amount some experts peg at $6 billion a year.
That this topic isn’t exactly uplifting is not lost on these companies – Jeff Zucker, co-founder and CEO of MyDirectives acknowledged that many people don’t realize the ramifications of not having end-of-life documentation or just don’t want to deal with it. But he said his hope is that his company, which started its work in 2007 and launched its service last year, can help people think of end-of-life planning as a way to take control of their circumstances, minimize suffering and honor a person’s life.
Image by racorn via Shutterstock.
Another great use of technology – I was not aware of these end of life apps/software but they seem like they would be incredibly useful (providing all health care providers would have easy access to them, of course!).
I am the manager of HealthWorks Collective, the healthcare website in the Social Media Today network. I would love to repost this article for our readers. We have a series on Health Start-Ups and I think this would be a great addition. I would create a profile for you on our site and credit you as author, and would also link the post back to the original on gigacom. Please let me know if this is OK.
I can’t help but wonder if there isn’t a gray area that medical staff would consider intrusive or extreme and a family member would have considered it to be an option that may have extended the life of a loved one.
Does TrueNorth have an actual product available on the market right now? Plenty of nice problem statements on their site, but no screenshots or descriptions of the actual product. Iâ€™m unclear as to whether itâ€™s something I could proactively use as a patient vs. something a doctor would advise me to use.
Does TrueNorth have an actual product available on the market right now? Plenty of nice problem statements on their site, but no screenshots or descriptions of the actual product. I’m unclear as to whether it’s something I could proactively use as a patient vs. something a doctor would advise me to use.
A very useful post on end of life decisions. Thank you.
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Unprecedented back-to-back annual coral bleaching events have affected two-thirds of the Great Barrier Reef, with this year's event already leading to mortality of half the corals in some key tourist tracts, scientists say.
Record-breaking warm waters along the Queensland coast has triggered widespread bleaching over 1500 kilometres of the World-Heritage-listed reef over the two summers, said Terry Hughes, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies.
Professor Hughes and his team completed aerial surveys last Wednesday after scoring about 800 separate reefs. The 8000km journey closely followed the path of the 2016 survey that found the northern regions of the Great Barrier Reef most affected.
"It's been a huge blow to the reef after last year the northern third was hit and now this year's it's the middle third," Professor Hughes said.
Corals bleach when temperatures exceed tolerance levels for too long, prompting them to expel the algae that supply most of their energy and the brilliant colours. Not all bleached corals die but as much as two-thirds of north corals have succumbed.
"The mortality in the central region will continue to unfold over coming months," Professor Hughes said. "We've already seen substantial mortality, up to 50 per cent on some central reefs in the past six weeks."
Bleaching has returned even to some of the regions hard hit last year, such as Cape York's Princess Charlotte Bay.
Some 30 reefs in the north had no score as they "effectively have ceased to exist at least in the shallow sections as coral reefs", said James Kerry, a marine biologist from James Cook University who also took part in the survey.
While this year's event is not expected to result in as much coral mortality as in 2016, there are worrying signs corals bleached at lower temperatures than a year earlier. That result may point to more bleaching next summer if conditions are again relatively warm.
"It seemed like the bleaching happened more quickly this year, which may suggest they are in a weakened, more stressed state following last year's event," Dr Kerry said.
Mark Read, manager of operations support at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, said "2017 has shaped up to be a pretty nasty year when it comes to coral bleaching".
"The corals didn't get any respite at all," Dr Read said.
Bleaching, though, was patchy. The authority was already in talks with tour operators to redirect visitors to "refugia" where they can still enjoy "a high-quality experience", he said.
Such areas are likely to be harder to find in the Whitsunday region near Mackay where Cyclone Debbie carved a swathe about 100km wide through the reefs.
"The one area that was actually doing pretty good was the one that bore the brunt of the category 4 cyclone," Dr Read said. "A lot of those massive corals are now lying on the beach in those locations. They've simply been snapped and rolled up onto the beach."
Temperatures are showing signs of easing back to more typical levels for this time of year, such as the Davies Reef off Townsville.
But the area had been remarkably warm even in a non-El Nino year, such as during the previous 2015-16 summer.
In March, for instance, large areas of Queensland reported their hottest mean temperatures on record. These included the coastal region of the state's north adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef.
Professor Hughes said some corals may regain their colour in the next three to six months, but it would take longer to see if they recovered their reproductive health and began a fuller recovery.
The faster growing branch corals and some other rapidly growing "weedy" species of corals could rebuild the reefs but the process would take years or even a decade. The loss of boulder corals would take much longer to recover from the bleaching.
Rising temperatures from global warming means the corals are likely to enjoy ever shorter stints between mass bleaching events, the scientists said.
"It's highly unlikely we'll have a period of calm for 10 or 20 years that will allow these reefs to re-establish to the point that they might be recognisable as they were," Dr Kerry said.
Dr Kerry said he was surprised the severity of the bleaching had not provoked more of a public response: "I don't really know what else the reef needs to do to signify that it's in serious trouble."
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Don Keough thinks Ireland should have a Diaspora Minister, saying it would transform Diaspora/Irish relations.
He also wants to see Notre Dame back in Dublin playing football in the next couple of years. Tourism leaders will surely salivate after 30,000 US fans showed up the last time they played.
He has just helped raise $3 million for a world class 1916 Rising documentary prepared at Notre Dame and already bought by RTE Public Television in the US and the BBC.
He also believes that Ireland faced the worst crisis any western government had after the economic collapse and that American business leaders are keenly aware of how well they have handled it.
He is the man who brought Notre Dame and Coca-Cola to Ireland. He also brought Bill Gates and Warren Buffett his lifelong friend too, hosting them at the K Club on their first ever visit. He serves on Berkshire Hathaway’s board with Buffett and is still an advisor to the board of Coca-Cola, the company he served for 40 years.
As president of Coca-Cola he blazed the multinational trail to Ireland in the 1970s. As Chairman of the Board at Notre Dame he created the Keough-Naughton Irish Institute in 1994 and their Dublin campus and laid the groundwork for the university to play in Dublin in September 2012.
At 86 he is far from a back number. He is Chairman of the Board of Allen and Company, the New York investment bank, and co-hosts their annual Sun Valley retreat attended by world business leaders such as Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch.
He divides his time still between New York and Atlanta, his home, and keeps a schedule a younger man would surely tire of. Every year he visits his beloved Ireland with his family and recently paid a visit to New Ross in Wexford and the famine-era replica ship like the one his great-grandfather Michael embarked on back in the 1840s.
He has come a long way from Michael’s lonely journey. Warren Buffet once stated that two men he met in business, Jack Welch and Don Keough, could have become president of the United States if they had chosen a political rather than a business career.
Keough demurs, but there is little doubt that he has been Ireland’s greatest advocate in America for decades now. His sense of the potential of the Diaspora was uppermost in his mind during our New York interview.
How would you approach the Diaspora if you were the Irish government?
If a person wants to be part of that Diaspora the Irish government needs to acknowledge that. A good start would be a Minister for the Diaspora, who would be charged with creating that welcome and outreach.
I know when you become an Irish citizen in Ireland there is an event around it. If you announce you are of the Diaspora and coming to Ireland that is important too.
Israel has a minister of the Diaspora, I read in the New York Times, where and I quote, “Over the next five years the Israeli government will spend $1.4 billion on a range of initiatives to strengthen Jewish identity abroad and Jewish connections to Israel and vice versa.” That is the kind of thinking we need.
There should be someone as Minister who is a constant part of the Diaspora, who is reporting back to cabinet.
It is an asset that needs to be used. Just to announce that minister would be huge all over the world.
I was delighted to see Irish President Higgins mention and dedicate his trip to the Irish Diaspora in Britain in his remarks during the state visit.
We are everywhere across this world, this Irish army waiting to help this small country their people left from.
Think of it – 70 million people worldwide, millions of whom are seeking a relationship with their ancestral home. What an opportunity!
If the Notre Dame game can bring 35,000 people to Ireland what could a massive outreach do? The Notre Dame game demonstrated what was possible. It was the ultimate power of the Diaspora that they didn’t just come to the game – they captured the country.
I was at church last week in Atlanta. A couple who came to the game came up and told me they were returning again, they fell utterly in love with Ireland. They are just one small example of what I’m saying.
What is the upside potential for the Diaspora do you think?
I think within a matter of five years you would double the number of people who would visit Ireland. That would be my goal.
It needs preparation; Diaspora packages need to be put together. A self-proclaimed member of the Diaspora should feel like Notre Dame fans do, part of something bigger, greater than the sum of its parts. There should be special discounts, meetings, and outreach.
Look what we did with Notre Dame – 35,000 came and there was a massive range of activities.
The visit to Ireland is always enjoyable, despite the weather sometimes. Ireland and what it continues to represent is the best argument for itself.
What brought you there first to your Irish roots?
Well, I wanted to bring my children to Ireland. My father had gone late in his life and he was deeply moved by it. I’ll never forget how proud he was to go.
It was the memory of my father. It was the happiest trip of his life, and he said he was so upset he didn’t go when he was younger so that was always on my mind. So the first time I went was when I could afford it. My father touched Ireland for me.
I brought my children and we drove everywhere. This was the early 1970s. I was so excited. I wanted to get involved. I remember years later reading your magazine Irish America and saying, finally, someone gets it.
You first created the links between the University of Notre Dame and Ireland. There was very little connection until you came along. What made you want to do it?
Well, Notre Dame had an extraordinary Irish background. Almost all the presidents had Irish connections. It was just waiting to be connected into Ireland.
What made me do the Keough-Naughton Irish Institute was Professor Chris Fox, who I had met, and he told me we had an amazing Irish collection of books and major historical links and he had a deep interest in Ireland. I said, “Why don’t you do something?” Then the issue was how do we get it started.
So I talked to Seamus and said, “You have some amazing ideas about what an Irish studies program should be like we’ll give you the blank canvas and the paints and you paint the Irish studies program you want at the home of the Irish in America.” By golly, that was what exactly he did.
One of the most exciting things in my life has been to see it develop the way it has. It was perfect timing and Chris was a great leader, and the university supported it totally.
Some 10,000 students have studied there in the past 20 years and thousands go to Ireland. Then Martin Naughton came on board as my partner. He has been amazing.
Martin and his family played a massive role in the success of Notre Dame game. It became a happening because of Martin and it was great that the Taoiseach was fully involved, and we even got the weather!
I always remember telling Martin about the idea of the game and really getting the Irish involved. He asked, “What took you so long?” It was a huge boost to the institute and we have enlarged our efforts and numbers in Ireland since.
You have a great new Irish project as well.
Yes, the 1916 landmark documentary series. BBC, RTE and PBS will show a three-part landmark documentary about the 1916 Rising and we have raised the money, almost $3 million for it. We are very excited about that. The series will run to coincide with the centenary of the Easter Rising.
What has Ireland meant to you overall?
Ireland has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. To have such an involvement there is a privilege. My family loves it and we have all spent amazing times there. I wanted to buy a house there, but my wife Mickie said I’d never leave it.
How is Ireland doing now in your opinion?
So the Kenny government had no easy way to solve the problems, and so they had the toughest job of any country in the world.
They have done well. You hear a lot of respect for Ireland now over here. They faced the toughest problems and were the first to demonstrate that they were working their way out of it.
I look on what happened with a lot of pride on how they have done it. It has been very tough on the Irish people I know, but you have to give them credit. I’m very optimistic about what is going to happen. A lot of smart Americans are getting involved there now, guys like John Malone.
Will you bring Notre Dame football back to Ireland?
It is not up to me but my own view is they will be back. The call to Ireland for Notre Dame is very strong. Maybe within the next couple of years.
Are you still bullish on US?
When I talk about the US I say never bet against it, these are the most resilient people in the world.
We have an amazing gene pool a collection of people from all over the world who came not to exploit but to find a new way to grow and develop, many of them were running away from poverty and oppression.
They could see hope here those that came. It took enormous courage for people to get up and leave in the first place.
I’m an absolute optimist; my own journey proves it from a small farm in Iowa to the presidency of Coca-Cola.
Who do you consider inspirational figures?
Father Ted Hesburgh at Notre Dame. He is an absolute inspiration; still a simple priest. His most important moment in his life is when he says Mass.
I took him to Latin America once. We called on several heads of state. The minute I brought him in there they paid no attention to me. He spoke to them in Portuguese, Spanish and charmed them all.
He was an incredible visionary who served six presidents on issues such as civil rights and immigration and built one of the great universities. There were those who said a Catholic university could never reach the heights of academic excellence, but Father Hesburgh knew differently.
Warren Buffet still tap dances to work every day. He has arranged to give all his wealth away, but he’d be rich in every important way with or without it.
He lives a very simple life. We have been friends for decades. I lived across the street from him in Omaha many years ago and he still lives there, in a modest house, like the man.
Outside of my own father, of the people I have worked with Warren Buffett stands out. He is a learning machine, a great philanthropist. He has kept an amazing sense of humility.
What is the best life lesson you have learned?
The life lesson I have learned is that wealth has nothing to do with money. It has to do with family, with friendships, with knowing and learning from interesting people, people who make a difference. If I didn’t have ten dollars I’d consider myself one of the wealthiest people in the world with the friends and family I have had.
I say to my grandkids, you need to be an interesting person, and not just learn how to move your thumbs around an iPhone or iPad. No one wants to be around uninteresting people I tell them. Young people today don’t want to be vulnerable. They want to be cool, the worst possible thing to be.
I tell them you need to go through life saying this is who I am comfortable in my skin, for better or worse. Take me for what I am.
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According to c8sciences.com, “While they share some of their respective symptoms, the definitions of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Executive Function Disorder aren’t quite the same. There is a definite difference between ADHD and Executive Function Disorder. A child or adult with ADHD might be hyperactive, inattentive, and/or impulsive, and while clinicians have always had a grasp on impulsivity and hyperactivity, the concept of inattention has evolved from a simple focus on “inability to stay on task” to a broader concept of “executive functioning”. Executive Functioning problems involve a pattern of chronic difficulties in executing daily tasks.” With that said, this article will describe the difference between Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Executive Function Disorder.
According to c8sciences.com, “Wouldn’t it make sense, then, that someone experiencing issues with executive functioning may have problems analyzing, planning, organizing, scheduling and completing tasks? Children and adults with EFD exhibit issues with organizing materials and setting schedules; they misplace papers, reports and other school materials and often times will have similar problems keeping track of their personal items or even keeping their bedroom organized. No matter how hard they try, the failure rate remains.” With that said, children and adults with Executive Function Disorder have difficulty with organization and setting schedules.
With that said, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Executive Function Disorder are similar to one another. However, it is also important to note that Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Executive Function Disorder are also different from one another. To be specific, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity focuses on staying focused on tasks. In contrast to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Executive Function Disorder focuses more on completing tasks. Therefore, to conclude this article, on a final note, similarities do exist between Executive Function Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder but so do differences, as well.
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Figma’s Table Museum series is adding another iconic artistic masterpiece to its collection. Following up on action figure versions of the Venus de Milo and Michelangelo’s David, there’s now a bizarre multi-limbed version of Leondardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man to add to your toy box.
With eight limbs at his disposal, Vitruvian Man would have no problem besting Michelangelo’s David in a wrestling match. But you’ll be paying a premium for all of those extra arms and legs. The figure is now available for just shy of $60, with an included display stand and da Vinci sketch backdrop.
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2019 NFL Conference Championships: How Are Bookies Prepping?
The NFL puts on its second most spectacular show of the season this Sunday when the top four teams in the league battle it out in the NFC Championship and AFC Championship.
Over in the NFC, 1-seed New Orleans hosts the 2-seed L.A. Rams. That’s the first game on January 20.
Then, in the AFC Championship, the Patriots travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs.
Online bookie agents must prepare for the huge amounts of action that should land in their sportsbooks before the 2019 NFL Conference Championships.
Check out how they’ll do just that using PayPerHead’s Prime Package tools.
Saints versus Rams could be one of those nail biters, or, it could end up a Saints blowout win.
Obviously, New Orleans was rusty in the first quarter of their 20-14 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. The Saints came back after being down 14-0.
New Orleans should control the clock, as they did with the close to 12 minute drive in the third quarter versus Philadelphia, meaning many pay per head agents might not use their layoff accounts on the total.
Many will also allow money on the Rams to ride if the Rams are over bet. Just in case, bookmakers will set max betting limits on both moneylines.
The New England Patriots are in a strange position on Sunday.
The Pats must beat the Chiefs on the road to stamp their ticket to Super Bowl 53. New England has been masterful for close to a decade.
Sunday’s AFC Championship will be New England’s eighth straight.
Less than 50% of NFL handicappers believe the Patriots cover the spread. Many are pounding the Chiefs.
Some pay per head agents will try and score big profits by allowing money to ride on the Chiefs and not use their layoff accounts.
If the Chiefs don’t cover the spread, those bookies who take that risk could make out big time.
Most all bookie agents will set max betting limits on both the Patriots and Chiefs. The odds are low enough to where some players will bet massive amounts on both sides.
Keep that in mind when deciding whether to back a team against the spread or on the moneyline.
Just as quickly as the 2019 NFL Conference Championship games approached, so to will Super Bowl 53. Each year the Super Bowl brings in over $4 BILLION worth of wagers, over 97% of wagers are placed through off-shore sportsbooks and individual bookmakers.
Don’t miss out on that $4 billion dollar pie. Become a bookmaker before February 3rd! Sign up for PayPerHead’s Prime Package today to get a 3-week trial at just $3 per head.
Speak to a rep today and start cashing-in on Super Bowl 53.
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Art can be found anywhere. And it doesn't have to be created with paint on canvas, sculpted from clay, or chiseled in stone.
Sometimes all it takes is a simple piece of chalk and a public sidewalk. That's the theory behind the annual Chalk Art Festival, which is June 13 at the Uptown Shopping Center in Richland. Registration starts at 8 a.m. Chalkers will begin their work at 9 a.m. and continue until 3 p.m.
"Chalk art is a wonderful and unique form of creativity," said Gus Sako, the event's organizer and owner of the Octopus' Garden novelty store in the Uptown.
"Give the smallest toddler a piece of chalk and sidewalk and they will be happy for hours," he said.
"I get off work and usually just head to the sidewalk," she said with a chuckle. "It's just too irresistible not to take part."
Both women also say creating chalk art can wreak havoc on the body, especially the knees, the back and shoulders.
"It's pretty hard for anyone to whip out a drawing in the hot sun on a dirty sidewalk. And, at almost 66, my knees are pretty creaky," Loomis said. "On the other hand, my kids just gave me a gardening stool with rails that might be just the thing!"
Calicoat says creating chalk art is like doing one-arm push ups for hours.
"I've been trying to train myself to use my left hand to paint so I'll probably do the same thing with chalk," Calicoat said.
The Chalk Art Festival was started by the now defunct Corporate Council for the Arts as a regional arts activity, Sako said. The festival moved to several locations until it finally settled at the Uptown a few years ago.
Categories and registration fees are: Up to age 5 $5; Ages 6-9 $5; Ages 10-12 $7; Ages 13-17 $7; Ages 18 and older $12. Sidewalks to be used for the chalk artistry will be on George Washington Way, Jadwin Avenue, Symons Streets and Williams Boulevard.
For more information, call 946-0077 or 943-6542.
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Roger Federer of Switzerland and Bill Gates shake hands at the Match For Africa 4 exhibition match at KeyArena on April 29, 2017 in Seattle, Washington.
When I was in my 20s and early 30s, my whole life was focused on work. I didn’t take vacations or weekends off. I was always the first in the office and the last to leave. These days, I’m better at balancing the work that I love to do with my foundation and taking time off to spend with family and friends.
My parents first taught me bridge, but I really started to enjoy it after playing with Warren Buffett. It takes a mix of strategy and teamwork to do well. We always find time to play a few games when we’re together.
This civilization-building board game is a favorite in my family. Melinda, our kids, and I have spent many hours sitting around the table trading resources, building roads, and strategizing to be the first to reach 10 victory points.
I have played tennis my whole life. This year, I got to play a match with Roger Federer to help raise money for his foundation. I wouldn’t say it was the most relaxing tennis game I’ve ever played, but it was a whole lot of fun.
It may not be too surprising that one of my favorite ways to relax is to keep learning. On average, I try to read a book a week, and I always bring a whole tote bag of them on vacation.
In 1993, Melinda and I visited Tanzania, Kenya, and Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo). That trip changed our lives and inspired us to start our foundation and get involved in philanthropy sooner than we planned. I know it’s not possible for everyone to travel halfway around the world, so I’ve started sharing VR videos on my Gates Notes blog of what I’m seeing and learning.
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Samoas and Thin Mints and Tagalongs, oh my! It's time to celebrate those little cookies that make diets shut right up and give you reason to shell out hundreds of dollars to your co-workers' kids each year.
If the world were run properly, we would all be asking politicians and potential life partners, "Thin Mints or Do-si-dos?" because Girl Scout Cookie preferences are just so telling.
But did you know that along with those sweet treats comes an interesting evolution? Turns out, the cookie names we all live and die by vary from state to state, and, at one point in history, girl scouts had to swap cookies for calendars.
Mashable rounded up 10 of the most surprising facts about those boxes of sinful deliciousness. But, be forewarned: You will so strongly be craving cookies by the end of this video that you may start having Thin Mint hallucinations.
Skivenes posted this as part of the hashtag #WhatInstagramMeanstoMe.
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Filed to: Whatcha Gonna Do?Filed to: Whatcha Gonna Do?
Being a successful professional wrestler takes more than having the right moves in the ring, and no one knows that better than the legendary Hulk Hogan. That's why the Kinect-powered Hulk Hogan's Main Event focuses as much on winning the crowd as it does winning the match.
Terry Gene Bollea didn't become one of the world's most iconic wrestlers by knowing how to do an Atomic Drop. He did it by becoming Hulk Hogan, a bombastic, charismatic, and generally larger-than-life personality capable of bending a crowd to his will whether a shining red and gold hero or a black-stubbled villain. The man knows how to put on a show. Hopefully he knows how to put on a game as well.
In Hulk Hogan's Main Event, developed by Panic Button for Majesco, the Impact Wrestling superstar takes players' custom characters under his meaty wing, guiding them on the path to stardom. He'll coach them on his signature poses as well as more than 30 wrestling combos using MIcrosoft's Kinect sensor to measure their movements. The more dynamic their motions, the more effective their performance. Once they feel the true power of Hulkamania coursing through their veins players are sure to dominate the game's nine increasingly lavish venues. It even supports two-player tag team matches, complete with virtual metal chairs and ladders, which certainly won't lead to anyone getting seriously hurt.
"Listen up, people! You will feel the power of Hulkamania when you step into this game," said Hulk Hogan. "Whether you are taking the damage or selling the pain, this game will let you unleash your inner wrestler as you hype up the crowd while putting the hurt on anyone that stands in your way!"
He's right! Too long have our inner wrestlers been leashed! Too long have our wrestling games delivered the sport without the spectacle! It's time to put on the hurt!
See? The guy is really good at that.
Hulk Hogan's Main Event is due out this fall from Majesco. Keep an eye out for more Hulkamania during E3 early next month.
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numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. She attended Shanksville Stonycreek High School and was a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Buckstown. Family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. until time of service at 8 p.m. Sunday at the Deaner Funeral Home, Stoystown. Rev. Robert Way officiating. Interment Lambertsville Cemetery. Contributions may be given to assist the family c/o Kay Grasser 158 Juniata St., Berlin, PA 15530, or to St. Paul's Lutheran Church, 6872 Lincoln Hwy., Stoystown, PA 15563. DeanerFuneralsAndCremations.com.
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A live events and bespoke creative technical solutions company based in Loughborough is seeking a technical project manager to join their growing production team.
You may currently be working be working as an audio-visual/AV project manager or technical production manager in live events or you may be a senior AV technician looking to make the next move in your career.
This position will encompass all elements of technical pre-production from developing and designing technical solutions in order to achieve their clients' briefs, through to managing and where appropriate supervising their execution. The projects they undertake include experiential marketing events, conferences, exhibitions and other live corporate events. The successful candidate will be passionate about driving forward improvements in technical production and working with the team to implement innovative technical solutions.
The role will include both UK and international travel and will require the successful candidate to work non-standard working hours including evenings, weekends and bank holidays.
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But those numbers are actually troubling. In contrast to our dominance in sports, African-American men make up less than 5 percent of all males enrolled in medical school. A recent report from the Association of American Medical Colleges highlights that there actually was a slight decline in the number of black men applying to and enrolling in medical school from 1978 to 2014, a finding unique among all demographic groups. The numbers of black men in law, business, academia and engineering are also disproportionately low.
The AAMC report describes some of the persistent barriers: underperforming K-12 education, lack of positive role models, negative or limiting public perceptions of African-American men. For decades, any listing of prominent African-American men would almost exclusively contain athletes and other entertainers.
These perceptions all too often become reality. I grew up in the 1980s in a working-class black neighborhood near Washington where sports and entertainment framed our dreams. I can’t remember anyone aspiring to become an astronaut or engineer or a senator or governor. Many of us did play competitive sports in high school, and a handful made it to the college level (me included). But only one went to the pros; the rest had to face the reality of finding regular jobs. Some had serious struggles with this transition. While we encouraged one another to practice our jump shots and perfect the art of throwing and catching a football, spending more time on the education road would have surely been a better strategy.
Let’s be honest, though. Becoming Barack Obama or Ben Carson is just as unlikely as becoming Michael Jordan or LeBron James. The difference is the process and where you’ll land if you fall short of their status. While going to law school (like Obama) or medical school (like Carson) isn’t likely to land you anywhere near the White House, it can lead to a very comfortable life. The average annual salary for a physician, which can be earned for 30 or 40 years, is over $200,000.
Putting all of one’s efforts into sports has enabled the exceptional few to become rich while leaving the majority with resumés ill-suited to economic success. The best sports-related options for those who don’t become professional athletes (sports agent, front office executive, sportswriter or coach) usually require a college degree. Unlike our dominance on the field or court, African-American men – unless they are well-known former players – are far less likely to wind up in these ancillary positions.
It’s unfortunate that Obama and Carson are so polarizing – politics has a way of glamorizing and denigrating people all at once. The shortcomings in how they are perceived underscore the need for more black men to reach the highest levels of achievement in other fields – whether it is in science, communications or business/technology. In the meantime, let’s take a step back to acknowledge the important example that Obama and Carson offer to young black men.
And while recent racial tensions at Duke, UNC and other colleges across America illuminate some of the challenges that black students can face in academic settings, education remains our best path toward long-term success. That’s a message that my sons, and every other young black male, can’t hear too much.
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LAURA'S is just what Oyster Bay needs and its residents know it. They have taken this newly opened American restaurant to their hearts and made it an instant hit. Even midweek evenings find nearly every table filled; on Saturdays there are crowds waiting in the bar.
Part of the draw is James Paskins, the restaurant's chef and owner, who acquired a following during his years at the Coach Grill, also in Oyster Bay. His wife and other family members efficiently handle the front of the house. Another crowd pleaser is the reasonable prices. Entrees start at $11 and top out at $18.
Laura's, named for Mr. Paskins's late mother, looks much as it did last year, when 68 West Main was at this location. It is spacious and comfortable. The dining room is defined by white columns, carved molding, smoky mirrors and crystal chandeliers. In a town filled with casual cafes, Laura's smart good looks make it stand out.
One new feature is the entrance through the bar. This, no doubt, eliminates drafts in the dining room but the crowded, smoky bar does not make a positive first impression. The dining room, however, is a place of charm and serenity.
Other salad sensations are a just-right Caesar and a plate of grilled vegetables served atop baby greens with a balsamic vinaigrette as a dipping sauce. The seafood salad carries a price tag ($12) that is higher than some entrees, but this abundant assembly could be a main course. It stars jumbo shrimp, sea scallops, calamari, scungilli, chopped peppers, red onions, celery and black olives in a lemon-basil vinaigrette.
Other openers I would order again are tender clams oreganata with a refreshingly spare use of bread crumbs, New Zealand mussels in a sherry pink sauce enlivened by spicy, smoky andouille sausage, a huge crab cake made lighter by the inclusion of shredded vegetables and two big portobellos served on a bed of grilled tomatoes and baby spinach. One creation that does not work, though, is the smoked-salmon-crusted-oysters. The delicate bivalves never had a chance. The assertive bready topping was too much for them. Every day a different homemade ravioli ($13) is featured. On my visit, they were filled with sun-dried tomatoes and black olives and tossed with big chunks of succulent chicken, chopped tomatoes, broccoli and an abundance of garlic. A winner! Another tasty pasta pick was fettuccine hidden under a mountain of sliced shell steak, three types of mushrooms and a chunky tomato sauce.
Fish were all cooked with precision. The herb-crusted tuna was rare as ordered and a special of striped bass in a tomato-basil sauce was moist and flaky as was sauteed tilapia in a mushroom-lemon-wine sauce.
Good meat selections include chicken medallions in a brown sauce spiked with bourbon and touched with cream, a juicy grilled rib eye, a tasty shell steak marinated in teriyaki sauce and a memorable rack of lamb special, served pink as ordered, atop a bed of barely wilted baby spinach. That spinach aside, the same vegetables show up with every entree. But, it should be said, the creamy mashed potatoes are terrific.
Desserts are not homemade but high-quality bakery fare. The ganache-like chocolate mousse cake and the creamy New York-style cheesecake are the most noteworthy.
Prices here are gentle, with 15 of 21 table wines in the $14 to $20 range. A glass of flinty Fetzer Sundial chardonnay costs $5 and a bottle of 1995 Tessera zinfandel, displaying a velvety texture and accessible fruit flavors, is $20.
68 West Main Street, Oyster Bay, 624-7100.
Recommended dishes Clams oreganata, crab cake, portobello mushrooms, mussels, all salads, bourbon chicken, rib eye, marinated shell steak, rack of lamb, ravioli, shell steak fettuccine, tuna, tilapia, striped bass, chocolate mousse cake, cheesecake.
Price range Lunch, entrees $5 to $11. At dinner, appetizers $4 to $12; entrees $11 to $18.
Hours Lunch, 11 A.M. to 3 P.M. Tuesday through Saturday; Sunday brunch 11:30 A.M. to 3 P.M.; Dinner 5 to 10 P.M. Tuesday and Wednesday, till 11 P.M. Thursday through Saturday, 4 to 10 P.M. Sunday.
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Touted as the world's "most human" Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistant that can "read between the lines" and "understand emotional expressions", Amelia has the potential to turn India's healthcare sector into an inclusive one, believes her creator Chetan Dube, CEO of New York-headquartered AI company IPsoft.
Amelia got her name from Amelia Earhart, one of the pioneering women in American history who became the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1932.
The tech Amelia combines automation, cognitive and emotional intelligence with Machine Learning (ML) capabilities to perform as a digital colleague.
When Amelia was first created, her conversational abilities sent shockwaves in the AI community, raising fears of job losses, especially in countries like India where a large number of people are employed in the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry.
But Dube, who left a teaching job at New York University's Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences 20 years ago to pursue a career in business, is unperturbed by the talk of job losses as he believes that AI would not displace as many jobs as it would help create.
"We are now at the third version of Amelia, a development process that has been going on for the last 15 years, and she is the industry's most advanced, conversational AI," Dube told IANS in an email interview.
"Not only does she communicate in over a 100 languages, she also has the ability to learn and improve over time which makes her the market's only AI that can fully adapt to new business requirements. She can automate any process in a business," he added.
Amelia can be pre-trained to handle requests and questions related to HR, finance, IT and procurement. In fact, according to Dube, Amelia can be trained to handle almost any knowledge-based task.
"She helps customers open new bank accounts, process insurance claims and register patients for hospital entry. As a whisper agent, Amelia provides her human colleagues with a personalised conversational user interface (UI)," said Dube, who thinks Amelia can do wonders in transforming India's healthcare sector.
"Amelia allows patients to self-manage in scheduling doctors' appointments, tests and medicines. She can also offer condition-specific advice and well-curated health management tips.
"A robust digital colleague like Amelia can free caregivers from high-volume patient needs to provide specialised care for unique or pressing concerns, while subsequently providing patients with enhanced 24/7 access to medical services," Dube explained.
"AI and Amelia are vital for an inclusive and democratic healthcare sector and could have an enormous impact," he added.
According to him, common AI assistants like Alexa, Cortana and Siri cannot read between the lines. They cannot understand underlying meanings or emotional expressions. Even when it comes to more advanced AI, the majority of these virtual assistants lack capabilities of contextualising information as people do, he said.
"When customers or employees interact with Amelia, they don't feel they are interacting with something artificial due to her advanced empathetic abilities, capacity to switch context and channels, and intelligent responses. Amelia is the only AI on the market that offers all of these features with expert-level accuracy and emotional intelligence," Dube noted.
IPsoft, Dube said, is now exploring opportunities with a number of agencies in digital health programmes, to accelerate technology adoption which will take pressure off of the human workforce while maintaining and improving services.
The company, which has 16 offices in 13 countries, including one in Bengaluru, helps with the digitisation process required in an organisation to deploy Amelia and make her work.
"It is a crucial part of our work to make sure our clients have the right prerequisites to implement Amelia. In fact, we have developed Amelia 'Marketplace', the first off-the-shelf AI-Marketplace for digital labour and conversational AI.
"The Amelia Solutions Marketplace offers complete out-of-the-box functional roles and associated skills for Amelia across verticals such as banking, insurance and healthcare," he said.
In order to train Amelia, IPsoft and its partners teach her the essential knowledge she will need to understand how a business runs.
"Partners provide IPsoft with industry-specific terminology, as well as any required logic frameworks that Amelia needs to learn to develop her decision-making skills," Dube explained.
India, according to Dube, is on a "straight path" of becoming a technological force to be reckoned with in the coming years.
"An important part of this advancement is, of course, to invest in the right innovation and technologies that strengthen the country's already strong industries," he said.
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MANCHESTER UNITED boss Jose Mourinho could still snare Real Madrid star Gareth Bale this summer.
At least that’s the verdict of beIN Sports journalist Richard Keys, who thinks the potential deal won’t be dead until the transfer window shuts on August 31.
Bale has spent the past four years with Real and during that spell he’s won the Champions League three times, as well as one La Liga title.
His future has been the subject of much speculation since the end of last season though with Florentino Perez targeting Kylian Mbappe.
Bale is thought to be the player Real would be most likely to sacrifice in order to generate funds to sign the Monaco forward.
And that situation has seen the 28-year-old heavily linked with a return to the Premier League with United.
Mourinho claimed he had no chance of signing Bale after he featured in Real’s UEFA Super Cup win over the Red Devils.
Keys reckons the Welshman could rock up at Old Trafford before deadline day though.
On Twitter, a fan asked him: "Hi Richard, still think there is legs in the Bale to United deal?"
And Keys replied: "Until the window shuts I do."
Should United bag Bale, he’s likely to cost more than the then-world-record £85m which took him to Real from Tottenham in 2013.
In the meantime, Mourinho's men will be out to make it two wins in two Premier League games when they visit Swansea on Saturday.
They got their 2017/18 campaign off to a perfect start by thrashing West Ham 4-0 last weekend, with new boy Romelu Lukaku bagging a brace.
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Chinese electronics firm HiSense is occupying the space at CES normally reserved for Microsoft.
The company is making the most of the Windows-maker's absence by displaying its wares - including this transparent 3D television.
The company says it could potentially be used by museums and other attractions to create exciting displays that combine real objects - such as artefacts - with 3D imaging.
Hisense spokesman Payton Tyrell said the screen was still a prototype.
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It's not always easy to keep mentally focused during running. Focus requires discipline and a certain level of mental toughness, meaning that you have developed the capacity to perform to the best of your ability despite external conditions or internal distractions. You can minimize distractions and help yourself stay focused by implementing self-help techniques and maintaining a positive, nonjudgmental attitude.
Mentally tough athletes push through and overcome obstacles to stay focused on their ultimate goal. Developing the traits that characterize mental toughness can help you remain focused during running. According to sports psychologist JoAnn Dahlkoetter in an article for the online runner's resource, "Competitor," several characteristics or traits tare commonly identified in mentally tough runners: Resilience, focus, strength, preparation, vision, openness and trust. You simply do not allow yourself to become distracted by external conditions or internal emotions -- you have the ability to put these distractions behind you for the time being and live in the moment.
Positive self-talk can encourage you and help you stay focused while running. According to sports psychologists Leif Smith and Todd Kays in "Sports Psychology for Dummies," mentally repeating specific cue words, such as "focus" or "hustle," may help to increase your concentration when you feel a decrease in your level of focus. Tape the cue words to a piece of athletic tape around your wrist and mentally concentrate on them while you run, as though the words are your mantra. Don't beat yourself up if you're having an off day. Talk to yourself as you would talk to a good friend. Be positive and encouraging and tell yourself that you can do it.
When you feel yourself starting to tire or slow down, marathon runner and trainer Jeff Galloway suggests practicing the following drill, adapted from his book, "Mental Training for Runners: How to Stay Motivated." Tell yourself that you're going to continue running for just one minute more, reducing your pace slightly for a few seconds, then continue this pattern, telling yourself "one more minute" or "10 more steps" until you achieve your goal for the day. If you break down your goal into small chunks, it may seem more manageable and achievable and you'll be less likely to lose focus.
Almost all athletes use some form of visualization prior to or during their workout or competition to help them stay focused. According to Galloway, worrying and focusing on the negative possibilities is a major way that many runners become distracted and lose motivation. Visualization can help you overcome your worries and direct your focus back to your goal. Visualization involves vividly imagining and rehearsing positive outcomes to future events or the event in which you're currently involved. Before your race, you might lie down and imagine yourself running effortlessly, overcoming obstacles and achieving your goal. The more vividly you can imagine the scene by involving all of your five senses, the more effective your visualization will be.